Propagation of light polarization in a birefringent medium: Exact analytic models

Driving the analogy between the coherent excitation of a two-state quantum system and the torque equation of motion, we present exact analytic solutions to different models for manipulation of polarization in birefringent medium. These models include the one-dimensional model, the Landau–Zener model, and the Demkov–Kunike model. We also give an example for robust, broadband manipulation of polarization by suitably tailoring the birefringence vector.

Research highlights► Analogy between coherent excitation of a quantum system and the torque equation. ► Exact analytic solutions for manipulation of polarization. ► Analogies of the one-dimensional, Landau-Zener, and Demkov-Kunike models. ► Robust, broadband manipulation of polarization by adiabatic rotation.