information:classification, structural:scholar_edition
Polarization of light

Electric and magnetic fields that are mutually perpendicular and fluctuating give rise to the transverse electromagnetic wave known as light. Electric and magnetic fields are perpendicular to the propagation direction of the wave. For example, if the wave propagation is in the z-direction, both the electric field and the magnetic field lie in the xy-plane. The electric field points in a specific direction in space since it is a vector. The direction of an electromagnetic wave's electric field vector E is referred to as polarization. If the electric field oscillates in the x-direction, the polarization of the light will be linear, along the x-direction.