Polarization Analysis of Gratings

Gratings are a fundamental component of many classical and modern optical systems, like those in the field of spectrometry or near-eye displays. A characteristic feature of gratings is their sensitivity to the polarization state of the incoming light, and their strongly vectorial behavior in general.

Regardless of whether this effect is desired or detrimental, the fast physical optics software VirtualLab Fusion has got you covered: First of all, through its consistent vectorial treatment, not only of the field and the grating itself, but of the whole optical system which the grating may be a part of. Second, because VirtualLab Fusion offers the necessary tools to analyze in detail the vectorial behavior of your gratings.

In the examples below, we show an in-depth introduction of the
Polarization Analyzer– a powerful tool in the Grating Optical Setup that allows the user to calculate the efficiencies of grating orders with respect to different polarization states, with additional options to study the role of the wavelength and angle of incidence – and an investigation of the polarization effects of slanted gratings.