Non-Paraxial Polarizer and Stokes Parameters

Polarization effects often play an important role in modern optical research and engineering due to the vectorial nature of the electromagnetic field. Linear polarizers (e.g. wire grid polarizer) are probably the most commonly used optical elements for the manipulation of the polarization state. Although in most cases polarizers are designed for paraxial situations, they are also used in non-paraxial setups, e.g. in the focal region behind a high-NA lens or for the measurement of the Stokes parameters behind a highly tilted polarizer. In VirtualLab Fusion we provide a model for polarizers in non-paraxial cases. Moreover the simulation results obtained with VirtualLab show good agreement with the reference.