Procedures for performing polarization ray tracing through birefringent media are presented in a form compatible with the standard methods of geometric ray tracing. The birefringent materials treated include the following: anisotropic optically active materials such as quartz, non-optically active uniaxial materials such as calcite, and isotropic optically active materials such as mercury sulfide or organic liquids. Refraction and reflection algorithms are presented which compute both ray directions and wave directions. Methods for computing polarization modes, refractive indices, optical path lengths, and Fresnel transmission and reflection coefficients are also specified.

Date Published: 11 December 1992
PDF: 12 pages
Proc. SPIE 1746, Polarization Analysis and Measurement, (11 December 1992); doi: 10.1117/12.138779

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 1746:
Polarization Analysis and Measurement
Dennis H. Goldstein; Russell A. Chipman, Editor(s)