Abstract
The idea of representing an arbitrary stratification by a series of uniform layers goes back at least to Rayleigh (1912). The problem of wave propagation through the transition is solved by matching the wave amplitude and derivative at the boundaries of the uniform layers, and letting the number of layers increase and their thickness decrease. (In the case of finite number of uniform layers, such as optical coatings, this limiting process is not required.) Rayleigh carried through the necessary algebra without reference to matrices; Weinstein (1947), Herpin (1947) and Abelès (1950, 1967) have shown how matrix algebra simplifies and systematizes this approach. We will give three versions of the matrix method, of which the last (given in Section 12–2) is the closest to that currently in use, but differs from it in having all matrix elements real in the absence of absorption.
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References
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© 1987 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Lekner, J. (1987). Matrix methods. In: Theory of Reflection of Electromagnetic and Particle Waves. Developments in Electromagnetic Theory and Applications, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7748-9_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7748-9_12
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