Calcium tungstate is a perspective acousto-optic material. Photoelastic properties

Acousto-optic modulators are main component of communication fibre-optic systems. From the other side the studies of the absolute piezo-optic effect (POE) are one of the important steps to estimate the acousto-optic efficiency of optical materials. In this article the investigation results of POE in calcium tungstate crystals (CaWO
₄
) has been represented. It is also proved that this crystal is essentially better acousto-optic material in comparison with lithium niobate (LiNbO
₃
) widely used in acousto-optic devices.