Effect of linear polarizers on highly focused spirally polarized fields

Abstract

Linear polarizers are commonly used for projecting the direction of the electric field of a transverse paraxial beam on the direction of the polarizer axis. However, the use of these devices with highly convergent field poses a practical problem because the non transversal character of electric field. In this article, we discuss the behavior of highly focused beams with spiral polarization when they pass through a polarizer. Interestingly, beams with azimuthal polarization display a non negligible irradiance in the direction of propagation after passing through a polarizer. On top of that, we found that the irradiance of a highly focused radially polarized beam after a polarizer is notably different from the projection of the field on the direction of the polarizer axis.

Non-paraxial idealized polarizer model

“…They represent the polarizer as a uniaxial crystal slab, and with such a model the physical nature of a polarizer can be well understood. The extended Jones matrix method has been used in many applications; for example, it was recently applied by Martínez-Herrero et al for their study of the polarizer effect with highly focused fields [9,10].…”