Superposition

Question 1

How is light that we encounter every day from the Sun or a light bulb polarized?

Answer 1

It always has a mixture of light that’s polarized in many different directions.

Question 2

What does an equal combination of vertically and horizontally polarized light produce?

Answer 2

It produces diagonally polarized light.

Question 3

What is light that is diagonally polarized referred to, in the language of quantum mechanics?

Answer 3

Diagonally polarized light is a superposition of two components: vertical and horizontal light.

Question 4

What’s important to note about vertical and horizontal components of light?

Answer 4

We identify vertical and horizontal components of light for convenience–they’re not fundamental facts of nature.