Complex polarization angle: Relation to traditional polarization parameters and application to microwave plasma polarimetry

Relations between real and imaginary parts of the complex polarization angle and polarization ellipse parameters are established. Differential equations for complex polarization angle as well as for polarization ellipse parameters are presented, which govern polarization evolution in weakly anisotropic magnetized plasma along the curvilinear ray. Properties of these equations are illustrated by analytical examples, related to the Faraday and Cotton–Mouton effects.