Light whose vibrations take place in only one of the infinite number of planes passing through the line of propagation is called

Options

A. circularly polarized light
B. plane polarized light
C. elliptically polarized light
D. all of these

Answer

B

Explanation

Ordinary light consists of electric `(E)` and magnetic `(H)` vibrations taking place in all possible planes containing the ray, the vibrations themselves being at right angles to the direction of the light path, i.e. light is a transverse wave motion. For each `E` vibration, the associated `H` vibration takes place in a plane at right angles to it.
In plane-polarized light, the `E` vibrationsw are confined to one plane (called the plane of vibration) and hence the associated `H` vibrations are also confined to one plane, the plane at right angles to this (called the plane of polarization). Light that can be resolved into two vibrations lying in places at right angles (of equal amplitude and frequency) and differing in phase by `90^(@)` is called circularly polarized light because the electric vector of the wave describes (at any point in the path of the wave) a circle about the direction of propagation of the light as axis.
Light that can be resolved into two vibratins lying in planes at right angles and of equal frequecny is called elliptically polarized light beacsue the electric vector at any point in the path of the wave describes an ellipse about the direction of propagation of the light. The form of this ellipse is determined by the amplitude of these two vibrations and by the difference of phase between them.