Optics and Optical Properties of Materials

Course name: Optics and Optical

Properties of Materials
Course code: MSE2121
Full Marks: 50 Unit: 0.5
Exam: 70% credits: 2
Attendance: 10% Lectures: 2 hours/week
Quizzes/Class Tests: 20%, Duration of Exam: 2 hours

Dr. Md. Abdus Sattar

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.

 Optics and Optical Properties of Materials

Chapter 3

Polarization of light

Lecture: One

Dr. Md. Abdus Sattar

Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.

 Optics and Optical Properties of Materials
Section-A
Course Contents:
Interference of light in a material: Principles of interference, coherent source,
phase and path differences, Fresnel’s bi-prism, determination of thickness of thin
films, interference in thin films, color of thin films, Newton’s ring and Michelson
interference.
Diffraction of light: Principles of diffraction, Fresnel and Franhofer diffraction,
maxima and minima in diffraction patterns, diffraction at a single and double silt,
plane diffraction grating, dispersive power of grating, resolving power.
Polarization of light: Principles of polarization, polarization of transverse wave,
plane of polarization, Polarization by reflection, Brewster’s law, Nicholson prism
analyzer, determination of refractive index.
Recommended Books:
 
Authors’name Title
N. S. Brizlal A text of optics
K .L Chopra Thin film Solar cells
S Musikant Optical Materials
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 Goals for Chapter 3

• To understand light rays and wave fronts

• To understand the definition of light

• To analyze speed of light in different media

• To analyze the polarization of light

• To understand Malus’s law & Transverse wave nature of light

• To understand the polarization of light by reflection and

refraction
• To analyze the polarization of light Using Brewster`s Law

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 The nature of light
• Light has properties of
both waves and particles.
The wave model is
easier for explaining
propagation, but some
other behavior requires
the particle model.
• The rays are
perpendicular to the
wave fronts. See Figure
at the right.

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 The Definition of light

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.
 Electromagnetic Wave
How an electromagnetic wave travels: An electrical wave vibrating in
one direction (blue in this case, and vibrating up-and-down) and a
magnetic wave vibrating at right angles to it (red in this case, and
vibrating from side to side). The two waves vibrate in perfect step, at right
angles to the direction they're traveling in. This diagram shows us
something scientists only really understood in the 19th century: electricity
and magnetism are equal partners that work together closely at all times.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.
 Speed of Light
n = c/v
material n material n DISTANCE OF LIGHT IN DIFFERENT MATERIALS
1.5
Vacuum 1 Crown Glass
2 Material Speed of Light (km/s)

1.00 1.5
Air Salt Vacuum 300,000
03 4

1.6 Air 299,000

Water 1.33 Asphalt
35
Ice 229,000
Ethyl Heavy Flint 1.6
1.36
Alcohol Glass 5
Water 225,000
Fused 1.45 2.4
Diamond
Quartz 85 2 Glass 197,000

1.46
Whale Oil Lead 2.6 Diamond 124,000
0

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 Some indexes of refraction

Air 1.00029

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 Polarization

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 Why Electric field vector is considered in polarization?

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 Polarization
 A light wave is an electromagnetic wave that travels through the vacuum of
outer space. Light waves are produced by vibrating electric charges.. For our
purposes, it is sufficient to merely say that an electromagnetic wave is a
transverse wave that has both an electric and a magnetic component.
 The transverse nature of an electromagnetic wave is quite
different from any other type of wave.If a slinky wave
were an electromagnetic wave, then the vibrations of the
slinky would occur in multiple planes. Unlike a usual
slinky wave, the electric and magnetic vibrations of an
electromagnetic wave occur in numerous planes. A light
wave that is vibrating in more than one plane is referred to
as un polarized light. Light emitted by the sun, by a lamp
in the classroom, or by a candle flame is un polarized
light. light waves are created by electric charges that vibrate in a variety of
 Such
directions, thus creating an electromagnetic wave that vibrates in a variety of
directions. This concept of un polarized light is rather difficult to visualize. In
general, it is helpful to picture un polarized light as a wave that has an average of
half its vibrations in a horizontal plane and half of its vibrations in a vertical plane.
It is possible to transform un polarized light into polarized light.
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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.
 Linear Polarization

 Polarized light waves are light waves in which the vibrations

occur in a single plane. The process of transforming un polarized
light into polarized light is known as polarization.
 An electromagnetic wave is linearly polarized
if the electric field has only one component.

E( x, t )  ˆjEmax cos(kx  t )
B( x, t )  kˆ B cos(kx  t )
max

 Figure at the right shows a Polaroid polarizing

filter.
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 Circular polarization

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 Circular polarization
• Circular polarization results from the superposition of two
perpendicularly polarized electromagnetic waves having equal
amplitude but a quarter-cycle phase difference. The result is that
the electric field vector has constant amplitude but rotates about
the direction of propagation. (Figure in below.)

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 Elliptical polarization

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 Malus’s law
• Figure 33.25 below shows a polarizer and an analyzer.
• A polarizer reduces the intensity of unpolarized light (I0) by a factor of 2, so
the intensity of transmitted light is I0/2.
• A second polarizer (the analyzer) at angle  relative to the first further
reduces the intensity according to:
Malus’s law: I = Imaxcos2.
• Example 33.5.
polarizer and
analyzer with
 = 30°.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education Inc.
 Polarisation of Transverse Waves..1
Let a rope AB be passed through two parallel vertical slits S1 and S2 placed close
to each other. The rope is fixed at the end B. If the free end A of the rope is moved
up and down perpendicular to its length,
transverse waves are generated with
vibrations parallel to the slit. These waves
pass through both S1 and S2 without any
change in their amplitude. But if S2 is made
horizontal, the two slits are perpendicular to
each other. Now, no vibrations will pass
through S2 and amplitude of vibrations will
become zero. i.e the portion S2B is without
wave motion as shown in fig 5.24.
 On the other hand, if longitudinal waves are generated in the rope by moving
the rope along forward and backward, the vibrations will pass through S1 and
S2 irrespective of their positions. This implies that the orientation of the slits has
no effect on the propagation of the longitudinal waves, but the propagation of
the transverse waves, is affected if the slits are not parallel to each other.

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 Polarisation of Transverse Waves..2
 A similar phenomenon has been observed in light, when light passes through
a tourmaline crystal. Light from the source is allowed to fall on a tourmaline
crystal which is cut parallel to its optic axis (Fig. 5.25a).
 The emergent light will be slightly coloured due to natural colour of the crystal.
When the crystal A is rotated, there is no change in the intensity of the emergent
light. Place another crystal B parallel to A in the path of the light. When both the
crystals are rotated together, so that their axes are parallel, the intensity of light
coming out of B does not change. When the crystal B alone is rotated, the
intensity of the emergent light from B gradually decreases. When the axis of B
is at right angles to the axis of A, no light emerges from B (Fig. 5.25b).
 If the crystal B is further rotated, the
intensity of the light coming out of B
gradually increases and is maximum
again when their axis are parallel.
 Comparing these observations with
the mechanical analogue discussed
earlier, it is concluded that the light
waves are transverse in nature.
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 Plane of Polarization:
 Polarization: The phenomenon of limiting the vibrating of electric
field vector in one direction in a plane perpendicular to the direction
of propagation of light wave is called polarization of light.
 Plane of vibration : The plane containing the optic axis in which the
vibrations occur is known as plane of vibration. The vibrations of
EM wave occurring in a plane. This plane is always perpendicular
to the plane of polarization.
 Plane of polarization: plane which is at right angles to the plane of
vibration and which contains the direction of propagation of the
polarized light is known as the plane of polarization. Plane of
polarization does not contain vibrations in it.
 When E waves are constrained in one plane means
they are restricted to pass through one plane only.

 PQRS represents the plane of vibration and

EFGH represents the plane of polarization.
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Plane of Polarization: Example
 Now you will be confused with which one plane? and how they
are restricted?
 I will give you a simple example of sunglasses(goggles) without
them you can't see the sun continuously on a sunny day, but
when you wear them you can easily see the sun. How this is
happening…!
 When you look directly towards Sun, EM waves are travelling in
all directions and planes so they have very high intensity, so you
can't withstand that much of energy and intensity.
 When you wear sunglasses the EM waves are confined in one
plane so restriction is introduced because of polaroids ( materials
which restrict the EM wave in one plane), this is nothing but
POLARIZATION. Now less intensity of EM waves on your eyes
hence you can see and face the Sun easily on bright sunny day.

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Plane of Polarization: Example

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