Extending Malus's law to the general case.

  • Context: Graduate 
  • Thread starter Thread starter yuiop
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    General Law
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The discussion confirms that an elliptically polarized wave can indeed be decomposed into two orthogonal linearly polarized components. This allows for the application of Malus's law to each linear component, facilitating the calculation of the transmission of the elliptical wave. The process involves first breaking down the elliptical polarization and then summing the transmitted components to derive the overall transmission result. This extension of Malus's law effectively addresses the complexities of circular and elliptical polarization.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Malus's law in optics
  • Knowledge of wave polarization types: linear, circular, and elliptical
  • Familiarity with vector decomposition in physics
  • Basic principles of wave transmission and interference
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the mathematical formulation of Malus's law for linear polarization
  • Study the decomposition of elliptical polarization into linear components
  • Explore applications of Malus's law in optical systems
  • Investigate the behavior of circularly polarized light in various media
USEFUL FOR

Physicists, optical engineers, and students studying wave optics who are interested in advanced polarization concepts and their applications in optical technologies.

yuiop
Messages
3,962
Reaction score
20
Is there an equation that is an extension of Malus's law that can handle circular and elliptical polarisation?

I have read that a linearly polarised wave can be decomposed into two opposite circularly polarised law. Is the converse true? Can an elliptically polarised wave be decomposed into two linearly polarised waves in such a way that we can apply Malus's law to each of the linear components and obtain a solution for the transmission of a elliptical wave?
 
Science news on Phys.org
Yes, you can decompose an elliptically polarized wave into two orthogonal linearly components. Then apply Malus's law to each component, and add the two transmitted components to get the transmitted wave.
 

Similar threads

Graduate Photon Polarization: Questions & Answers
  • · Replies 23 ·
Replies
23
Views
10K
Undergrad Local mechanism for nonlocal anticorrelations inside spin theory
  • · Replies 74 ·
3
Replies
74
Views
6K
Graduate Intensity as light passes through two quarter-wave plates?
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
5K
Graduate How Does Nonlinear Optics Impact Light Propagation in Media?
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
Is Circular Polarisation the Same as Linear Polarisation?
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
Undergrad Non-locality by memory (Jung, 2020) applied to stochastic mechanics
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
2K
Infinite number of polarisers (Malus's law)
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
5K
Interferometer to measure refractive index of a gas
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
Undergrad About polarization and polarizer
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
Graduate Entangled photons and polarisation.
  • · Replies 8 ·
Replies
8
Views
3K