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Ivan Bazarov
Cornell Physics Department / CLASSE
Outline
• Types of polarization
• Jones’ matrices
• Birefringence
• Polarizing optical components
• Polarization in scattering
Polarization types:
• linearly polarized light
• circularly polarized light
• unpolarized light (non-laser)
Left
CW
Ex1: Check that HLP and VLP are orthogonal as well as RCP and LCP.
Ex2: How to obtain the light intensity from its Jones vector (if in vacuum)?
Ax
J0 · J = [A⇤x A⇤y ] = |Ax |2 + |Ay |2
Ay
Normal modes:
TJ = µJ
T1 T2 T3
T = T3 T2 T1
Proof:
using , we get
These devices do not affect one polarization component (fast axis) but add a
retarding phase to the other component (slow axis).
When ‘spring constants’ are not the same, the material is said to be optically
anisotropic (otherwise, it is said to be isotropic).
ne
Phase retardation for x,y-
polarizations
2⇡
= d(n0 ne )
0
Material no ne
Tourmaline 1.669 1.638
Calcite 1.6584 1.4864
d Quartz 1.5443 1. 5534
Sodium Nitrate 1.5854 1. 3369
image taken from philem.me.uk Ice 1.309 1.313
Rutile (TiO2) 2.616 2.903
✓B
Other types rely on splitting beam into ordinary and extraordinary waves:
Electric field of light drives little dipoles (bound electrons) → light is re-radiated
or scattered (Rayleigh scattering).
Its most salient feature is that Iscat. ∝ 1/l4 (i.e. the blue light gets scattered
much more than red, the reason behind blue skies)
Scattered light is linearly polarized when viewed at 90º from the scatterers;
& partially polarized at other angles.
linearly
unpolarized light
polarized
molecule
partially
linearly
polarized
polarized
http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-
science/6-007-electromagnetic-energy-from-motors-to-lasers-spring-
2011/lecture-notes/MIT6_007S11_lec25.pdf