The Jones Vector

The Jones vector represents the state of a polarized light wave similarly to the Stokes vector. If we assume that the coordinate is such that the wave is propagating along the- axis, the polarization can be decomposed into two vectors at right angled, in this example in theanddirections. The Jones vector is written as a two row column matrix consisting of the complex components in theanddirection:

If phase is not an issue the vector may be normalized to give

Some Jones vectors are given below:

Horizontal polarization:

Vertical polarization:

+45 Degree polarization:

-45 Degree polarization:

Right Circular polarization:

Left Circular polarization: