SPIE - Education Polarized Light and Optical Design SC1247

Polarized Light and Optical Systems surveys polarization effects in optical systems and their simulation by polarization ray tracing. First polarized light is reviewed with Jones vector and Stokes parameter descriptions. Polarization elements and effects, including retardance and diattenuation, can be described by Jones matrices for coherent and ray tracing calculations, or with Mueller matrices for incoherent calculations. A framework for polarization ray tracing is presented for nearly spherical waves in optical systems to include the large set of polarization effects which occur: polarization elements, Fresnel equations, thin films, anisotropic materials, diffractive optical elements, stress birefringence, and thin films. These polarization aberrations adversely affect the point spread function/matrix and optical transfer function/matrix. Polarized Light and Optical Systems surveys polarization effects in optical systems and their simulation by polarization ray tracing. First polarized light is reviewed with Jones vector and Stokes parameter descriptions. Polarization elements and effects, including retardance and diattenuation, can be described by Jones matrices for coherent and ray tracing calculations, or with Mueller matrices for incoherent calculations. A framework for polarization ray tracing is presented for nearly spherical waves in optical systems to include the large set of polarization effects which occur: polarization elements, Fresnel equations, thin films, anisotropic materials, diffractive optical elements, stress birefringence, and thin films. These polarization aberrations adversely affect the point spread function/matrix and optical transfer function/matrix.