M V Berry and M R Dennis 2004 J. Opt. A: Pure Appl. Opt. 6 S24 doi:10.1088/1464-4258/6/3/004
M V Berry and M R Dennis
Show affiliationsIn the 2 × 2 matrices representing retarders and ideal polarizers, the eigenvectors are orthogonal. An example of the opposite case, where eigenvectors collapse onto one, is matrices M representing crystal plates sandwiched between a crossed polarizer and analyser. For these familiar combinations, M2 = 0, so black sandwiches can be regarded as square roots of zero. Black sandwiches illustrate physics associated with degeneracies of non-Hermitian matrices.
Issue 3 (March 2004)
Received 29 July 2003, accepted for publication 28 August 2003
Published 24 February 2004
M V Berry and M R Dennis 2004 J. Opt. A: Pure Appl. Opt. 6 S24
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