What is Linear polarization: Definition and 17 Discussions

In electrodynamics, linear polarization or plane polarization of electromagnetic radiation is a confinement of the electric field vector or magnetic field vector to a given plane along the direction of propagation. See polarization and plane of polarization for more information.
The orientation of a linearly polarized electromagnetic wave is defined by the direction of the electric field vector. For example, if the electric field vector is vertical (alternately up and down as the wave travels) the radiation is said to be vertically polarized.

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  1. ZX.Liang

    I The linear polarization and brightness of pulsars

    I guess that, from a statistical perspective, the linear polarization of pulsars is positively correlated with their brightness. Has there been any relevant paper discussing this issue?
  2. Frigorifico9

    I How different is a calcite crystal from a polarizer?

    First of all, I apologize if I use incorrect terminology or I express myself poorly, I am trying my best. That said, I hope you guys are smart enough to understand me despite my shortcomings I know that calcite has birefringence, and I know that if you take calcite crystals and cut them and...
  3. dazaireta

    Linear Polarization Interference: Can It Happen?

    Two waves are linearly polarized. The electric field of one wave is aligned with the x-axis and the other is aligned with the y-axis. In the absence of matter that might change the polarization, can these waves interfere with each other?
  4. Decimal

    Rayleigh Scattering and linear polarization

    Hello, I am having a bit of trouble understanding the concept of Rayleigh scattering as it relates to light from the sun. My book states that unpolarized light will hit the atmosphere, and the scattered light will be mainly horizontally polarized, while the unscattered light remains...
  5. T

    A Is linear polarization not expected from an astrophysical maser

    I was reading this text where they state: "Many cosmic masers are observed to have both circular and linear polarization although the reasons for linear polarization are not well understood." Just curious, aren't there any molecules such as OH, CH4, or water masers that have transitions that...
  6. S

    Understanding Jones Matrixes for Linear Polarization

    I have a very basic question regarding jones matrixes. So for Linear polarized light in the x direction the jones matrix would be (1,0) And for linear polarized light in the y direction the jones matrix would be (0,1) But when light is linearly polarized in a 45 degree angle from the x-axis...
  7. P

    Finding Degree of Linear Polarization

    I would like to measure the DoLP of outside daylight at the horizon with the sun overhead (midday in summer). Found this equation: DoLP = (reflectanceS - reflectanceP) / (reflectanceS + reflectanceP) Where S and P are defined: “The two orthogonal polarization planes are s, perpendicular to the...
  8. Lensmonkey

    2 layers of birefringent crystal, how many rays?

    I am trying to solve a problem my camera exhibits. It has a sensor with 6000x3376 pixels. HD video is 1920x1080. In order to reduce the amount of information to the processor the camera throws away 2 out of 3 pixel lines. this creates a problem with thin lines tike telephone lines and makes...
  9. metatrons

    Experimentally measure the degree of circular polarization

    Dear All: I have recently encountered a small question regarding the determination of the degree of circular polarization of light. In an optical experiment, we are trying to create a circular polarized light beam by passing a HeNe-laser through a linear polarizer and a quarter wave plate (in...
  10. I

    Jones Vector of Linear Polarization

    Hi, I understand that the α in the form below refers to angle of E-vector to the horizontal. and that a jones vector should be represented this way: I tried to represent the linearly polarized sin & cos form in the jones vector form I know I'm doing something wrong because a linearly...
  11. H

    Linear polarization in a glass prism

    Homework Statement Unpolarized light is reflected internally in the point P in a glass prism. When the prism is located in air, β is the critical angle of total reflection. I am going to calculate for the following problems: a) If the prism is submerged into water the reflected light becomes...
  12. S

    Linear Polarization Experiment Question

    I'm a grad student and I got some recent results that I can't figure out. Thought I would post a question and see if I can get a quick answer. I'm taking pictures of polarized system. Using a normal linear polarized filter that has a slip ring, so I take a picture, rotate the slip ring a...
  13. G

    Plane wave equation of linear polarization

    Question 1 Basically I have no idea how to calculate the z part of the equation since x and y are assumed to be propagating in the z direction.
  14. K

    Linear Polarization: Magnetic Field Effects

    what happens to the magnetic field during linear polarization and what happens exactly?
  15. P

    Linear Polarization: Active or Passive Element?

    Hi, is a linear polarizer acting like an active element that rotates polarization angle or is it just a passive element? I wonder about this because there is this experiment with three polarizers, where two of them are rotated 90 degree to each other so no light can pass through, and then...
  16. D

    QM decomposing linear polarization states

    Hello, I am trying to decompose |(pi/2)+\vartheta> into canonical basis. I have done it for |\vartheta> but i am unsure about what to do with the pi/2. Given |theta> = (cos\vartheta sin\vartheta) I was thinking that pi/2 becomes (0 i) and I would add the two vectors together. Any help would...
  17. T

    Magnetic Field of Rotating Cylinder w/ Linear Polarization

    Homework Statement Long dielectric cylinder of radius R carries a built-in electrostatic polarization P that is linearly proportional to the distance to the axis, P=\alphar, P is directed along the radius-vector r. Cylinder is being rotated around the axis with angular velocity \omega...
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