
49-1
49.1 Basic Concepts of Polarization
Polarization of light is a property of electromagnetic (EM) waves, which include heat, microwaves,
radio waves, and x-rays. An EM wave has orthogonal electric and magnetic elds associated with it that
vi
brate
in di
rections
pe
rpendicular
to th
e
di
rection
of pr
opagation
. e el
ectric eld
of a sin
usoidal
EM
wave, in particular, can always be decomposed into two orthogonal components; each component has
an amplitude and a phase. e amplitude is the maximum value of the eld component, and the light
in
tensity
is pr
oportional
to th
e
sq
uare
of th
e
am
plitude
. e ph
ase,
re
ferred
to a x
ed
po
sition
or ti
me, ...