Polarimetry

Polarimetry measures the polarization state of electromagnetic radiation, including the orientation and shape of its electric-field oscillations. It uses those measurements to characterize sources, materials, and optical effects.

Stokes parameters: Four quantities that describe the intensity and polarization state of electromagnetic radiation. They encode the polarization properties a polarimeter measures.
Optical rotation: The rotation of linearly polarized light as it passes through a material or solution. Its angle provides a standard polarimetric measure of optically active substances.
Electromagnetic radiation: Energy transmitted through space as coupled oscillating electric and magnetic fields. Polarimetry measures a property of this radiation.
Radiometry: The measurement of electromagnetic radiation in terms of its radiant power and distribution. Radiometry measures energy flow, while polarimetry resolves polarization state.
Brewster's angle: The incidence angle at which reflected light from a dielectric surface is fully linearly polarized. It demonstrates how reflection can create a strongly measurable polarization change.
Mueller calculus: A matrix formalism describing how optical systems transform Stokes parameters. It predicts how components in a polarimeter alter measured polarization.
Circular dichroism: The differential absorption of left- and right-circularly polarized light by a material. Polarimetric measurements reveal molecular structure through this absorption difference.
Polarization (electromagnetic waves): The orientation and time-varying pattern of a transverse wave’s oscillations. It is the physical property that polarimetry quantifies.
Photometry: The measurement of visible light weighted by the sensitivity of human vision. Photometry weights brightness by vision rather than measuring polarization.
Rayleigh scattering: The scattering of light by particles much smaller than its wavelength. Its polarization pattern helps explain polarized skylight and reveals scattering geometry.

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