Right Hand Circular Polarization (RHCP) Animation

[wa6tkq]

This animation is ok. The circular polarization is shown as the result of two orthogonal vectors (red and blue). At any point in the wave the red and blue amplitudes remain constant as that point moves in the Z direction. For example when the blue vector is maximum the red vector is zero and the resultant is a vector in the X direction. That vector remains in the X-direction as that point moves in the Z direction. It does not rotate in space. There is rotation in time as shown by the green line.

[meyavuz]

@wa6tkq Thanks again for your comments. Actually both animations are correct and basically the second one is created using this one b basically finding the amplitude of the total electric field by using the x and y components at each point. As you can imagine, at a given spatial point, as the wave travels, the direction of electric field vector will be rotating as the wave travels in time. See the other animation. Thanks

[meyavuz]

Thanks for the comment. I think this needs a clarification. As already mentioned in Wikipedia (search for Circular polarization in wikipedia), there is already a confusion on the conventions. Here, the convention used is that while the thumb is in the propagation direction (i.e. away from the source), the curling of right hand fingers matches the temporal rotation. Hence this is right hand polarization as given in IEEE standards. Reference for this animation is Balanis Advanced EM book.

[tensorbundle]

in engineering we generally define circular polarization seeing from the point of source. Hence the animation is for left hand polarization

[harrydersteppenwolf]

thank you for this video. but i think the orientation is left, not right. to assess the orientation, you have look in the direction of the wave's sources, not in the direction of the wave's propagation.

[harrydersteppenwolf]

i am assuming that the pictured wave is moving from left to right.