ABSTRACT
In the previous chapters, we have seen that the Mueller matrix formalism and the Jones matrix formalism enable us to treat many complex problems involving polarized light. However, the use of matrices only slowly made its way into physics and optics. In fact, before the advent of quantum mechanics in 1925, matrix algebra was rarely used. It is clear that matrix algebra greatly simplifies the treatment of many difficult problems. In polarized light, even the simplest problem of determining the change in polarization state of a beam propagating through several polarizing elements becomes surprisingly difficult to do without matrices. Before the advent of matrices, only direct and very tedious algebraic methods were available. Consequently, other methods were sought to simplify these difficult calculations.
