Basic knowledge of polarized light

Introduction

Polarization of light is one of the most fascinating and important properties of light. Polarized light is used in everyday technologies such as sunglasses, LCD displays, and 3D movies. It is important in fields such as medicine and astronomy. In this article, we’ll discuss the basics of polarization of light and its applications.

What is Polarization of Light?

Light is an electromagnetic wave that naturally oscillates in all directions. This is known as unpolarized light. Polarization of light is the process of limiting the direction of the oscillations of light waves. The waves then oscillate in a single plane which is known as the plane of polarization.

Light polarization can be achieved by using a Polarizing medium such as a Polaroid sheet. Polaroid sheets contain long-chain molecules that are aligned in a particular direction. When unpolarized light is incident on the Polaroid sheet, only those light waves that are oscillating along the same direction of the molecules can pass through it. The rest of the light is absorbed by the sheet.

Polarization of light can also be achieved using a linear polarizer. A linear polarizer is a device that is made out of two sheets of Polaroid sheets laminated together. The first sheet is cut at an angle of 45° relative to the axis of the Polaroid sheet while the second sheet is cut at an angle of 90° relative to the same axis. This allows only light waves oscillating along the axis of the first sheet to pass through the device.

Types of Polarization

There are two types of polarization of light: linear polarization and circular polarization. Linear polarization is when the light oscillates in a single plane. Circular polarization is when the light oscillates in a circle. The direction of the circle can either be clockwise or counterclockwise.

Applications of Polarization

Polarization of light has many applications in everyday life. It can be used in sunglasses to reduce the brightness of sunlight. Polarized sunglasses contain two sheets of Linear Polaroid that are placed at angles of 90 degrees to each other which allows only those light waves that are oscillating along the same axis to pass through the device. This reduces the amount of reflected light from the sun and reduces the amount of glare.

Polarized light is also used in LCD displays. LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays) are devices that produce images by using electric currents applied to crystals suspended in liquid. If the electric current is applied perpendicularly to the crystals, then the light passing through it will be linearly polarized. This makes it easier to control the brightness of the display and prevents accidental reflections.

Polarization of light is also used in 3D movies and imaging systems. A 3D movie is composed of two images projected onto the same screen but with different polarizations. This means that the left eye sees a different image than the right eye and therefore, creates a sense of depth. Polarized light can also be used in imaging systems such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) which provide high-resolution images of the internal structure of objects.

Conclusion

Polarization of light is an important physical phenomenon and has many everyday applications. Without it, our lives would be greatly different. Hopefully, this article has provided some insight into the basics of polarization and its applications.

Polarization of light refers to the direction of vibration of the individual light waves. Natural light contains photons in all directions, meaning the polarization of any one light beam is random. When passing through a polarizing filter or a component with specifically designed optical axis, light behaves differently depending on its polarization.

Polarized light is described as bright and dark with bright being the region of the maximum intensity and the dark being the most minimized intensity of the light. An example of the light with maximum polarization is ray that is coming from a polarizer such as a Polaroid film. Polaroid lenses are widely used in application such as sunglasses and cameras to reduce glare, increase contrast and improve clarity.

Plane polarzers convert randomly polarized light into a single plane light wave. This device is commonly found on 3D glasses, cameras and LCD displays.

Circular polarizers, on the other hand, can convert plane polarized light into circularly polarized light. These circular polarizers play a key role in applications such as solar cell, LCD and camera.

In order to gain more control of light polarization, a polarization rotator can be used to alter the polarization state of a light beam. This allows users to either rotate the plane of polarization or alter the ellipticity of the circular portion of the beam.

There is also a type of polarizers called Holo/Phase polarizers that can control the phase of light. These polarizers are mostly used for controlling light particles for photonic applications.

Overall, understanding of polarization properties of light is important for many applications of light. It is important to know the basics of polarization of light in order to best utilize these components.