Re: p- and s-polarization question

in article [EMAIL PROTECTED], tzavalas at
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote on 11/5/03 7:31 AM:

> Thank you both for the tips.
> 
> 
> 
> Bill I must admit that I only understood what you've tryed to describe
> after having seen the figure at the site that Juha reported.
> 
> http://www.uta.edu/optics/research/ellipsometry/ellipsometry.htm
> 
>> Fig. 2 Schematic of the geometry of an ellipsometry experiment.
> 
>> The coordinate system used to describe the ellipse of polarization is
> the p-s >coordinate system.  The s-direction is taken to be
> perpendicular to the >direction of propagation and parallel to the
> sample surface. The p-direction >is taken to be perpendicular to the
> direction of propagation and contained in >the plane of incidence.
> 
> So in order to make things easier for me ;-) lets simulate my case.
> 
> I've conducted a polarized IR-transission experiment using a thin
> film.
> 
> Try to imagine how fig 2 would be if theta was equal to zero
> 
> s and p would lie on the surface of the sample and would have
> north-south and east-west ?true?
> 
> So you wanna say that whenever I see a polar diagram of p- or -
> polarization at various angles concerning a thin film ir-trasmission
> exp. the different angles refer to theta(fig2) as a tilt angle.
> 
> I guess that at theta =0 -or at whatever theta- in order to have s- or
> p- light I just turn the polarizer 90 degres.
> 
> 
> If I'm not true please tip me on how can i get p- or s- polarized
> light (using a polarizer).
> 
> Maybe my first message was toooo bad formed but the above was what I
> was trying to state. In the film that I've used I have oriented
> dipoles and believing that there was only one p- or s- state I kept
> wondering "how can I find polar diagrams of them"?????????
> 
> It's now more than obvious that the p-polarized (and s-)modes are
> infinite as the values that theta angle can have.
> 
> 
> thanks for everything,
> greetings spiros

Fig 2 is OK. One problem is that when theta is zero, there is no distinction
between p and s. They are, what is called, degenerate. Tilt angle is the
same as theta. Tilting breaks the degeneracy. Fancy lingo!

Bill