Question

Light that is polarized along the vertical direction is incident on a sheet of polarizing material. Only 93% of the intensity of the light passes through the sheet and strikes a second sheet of polarizing material. No light passes through the second sheet. What angle does the transmission axis of the second sheet make with the vertical?

Answer 1

As we know that;

From Malus' law which states that

= I = I0 * cos (theta)^2
So, which means that the the power passing through is proportional to the square of the cosine of the relative angle of the polarizer's transmission angle.

Then,
For the first polarizer,
= 0.93= cos(theta1)^2

= theta1 =15.34deg

Then,

The light incident on the second polarizer is now tilted at angle theta. If no light passes through the second polarizer ,

So, we can the Malus's law again to calculate the relative angle.

So,
= 0 = cos(theta2)^2
= theta2 = 90 deg

But theta2 is relative to theta1

So, Angle that the transmission axis of the second sheet make with the vertical

= 90+15.34

= 105.34 deg