StokesFormalismus
The Stokes formalism is a framework in polarization optics that describes the polarization state of light using four real numbers known as the Stokes parameters: S0, S1, S2, and S3. The Stokes vector S = [S0, S1, S2, S3]^T provides a compact representation that is well suited for both fully and partially polarized light.
S0 represents the total intensity of the light beam. The parameters S1, S2, and S3 quantify the
Geometrically, the normalized three-vector (S1/S0, S2/S0, S3/S0) corresponds to a point on the Poincaré sphere for
The formalism extends to the Mueller calculus, where optical elements are described by 4×4 Mueller matrices
Applications of the Stokes formalism span polarimetry, astronomy, remote sensing, ellipsometry, and optical communications, where robust,