This course will present the theory of light polarization (and other vector fields), as well as several of its applications. The description is based on geometric representations such as the Poincaré sphere, which allow us to intuitively understand the transformations of polarization due to phenomena such as birefringence. In particular, the phenomenon of the geometric phase (also known as Pancharatnam and/or Berry phase) will be discussed, which results from the history of polarization transformations and which has a simple interpretation in terms of the Poincaré sphere. This phase is found not only in optical fields but in any wave phenomenon described by a complex vector field. Some applications of the concepts presented will be briefly discussed, including metrology, microscopy, and quantum encryption.
Short Biography
Miguel A. Alonso is a Professor at the Institut Fresnel and Adjunct Dean of Research for Centrale Méditerranée in Marseille, France. He is also a Professor at The Institute of Optics and Senior Scientist at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, both at the University of Rochester. He held an A*Midex Chair of Excellence with Aix- Marseille Université from 2018 to 2020. He is a Fellow of OPTICA and was the recipient of the 2023 SPIE G.G. Stokes Award. He has served as Associate Editor of Optics Express and Optica, Deputy Editor of Optics Express, and is currently Editor-in-Chief of Optics Letters.
Research Overview
Professor Alonso's research is on mathematical aspects of wave propagation, in particular on the description and applications of beams with structured intensity and polarization distributions, optical coherence, and the connection between the ray and wave models of light.
