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QuickNote
(A Five Minute Tutorial)
- Main Concepts To Learn:
- Linearly polarized light
- Circularly polarized light
- Elliptically polarize light
- Jones Vectors
- A Quick Step-By-Step For Each Topic:
- Linearly polarized light:
- The applet starts with a linearly polarized light in the x-polarization
- Now change the x and y components of polarization without
changing the phase. Notice how the orientation of the polarization changes
but the light is still linearly polarized.
- This time change the relative phase (phase of the y component
relative to the x component) to , then change the x and
y components. Again the the light is still linearly polarized
- Therefore the x and y components of linearly
polarized light are in phase (relative phase = 0) or out of
phase (relative phase = π).
- Circularly polarized light:
- Set the x and y components to 5.0a each, so both the
x and y components have the same magnitude.
- Set the relative phase to Now you get a right hand circularly
polarized light.
- Now set the relative to 3π/2 (same as -π/2). Now you get a left
hand circularly polarized light.
- Elliptically polarized light:
- Arbitrarily set the x and y components of polarization.
- Arbitrarily set relative phase.
- Now you get an elliptically polarized light. Then the only
condition on an elliptically polarized light is that the x and
y components must have same wavelength. This also shows that
linearly polarized light and circularly polarized light are just special
cases of elliptically polarized light.