Evolution of polarization in an inhomogeneous isotropic medium |
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Authors: | N I Petrov |
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Institution: | (1) All-Russian Electrical Engineering Institute, 143500 Istra, Moscow Region, Russia |
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Abstract: | The depolarization and rotation of the polarization plane of radiation propagating in a two-dimensional graded-index medium
is investigated on the basis of the quantum-mechanical method of coherent states. It is shown that the degree of polarization
of both linearly and circularly polarized radiation decreases with increasing distance as a result of interaction between
the polarization (spin) and the path (orbital angular momentum) of the beam. The wave nature of the depolarization is emphasized.
The depolarization decreases as the radiation wavelength decreases. It is found that the degree of polarization exhibits oscillations
of pure diffraction origin during the propagation of light in a single-mode optical fiber. It is shown that the rotation of
the polarization plane is nonuniform in character and depends on the offset and the tilt angle of the incident-beam axis relative
to the fiber axis. The Berry phase is found to undergo oscillations of a wave nature during the propagation of radiation in
an inhomogeneous medium. It is shown that the spread in the angle of rotation of the polarization plane increases with distance
and can be determined from measurements of the degree of polarization of the radiation.
Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 112, 1985–2000 (December 1997) |
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Keywords: | |
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