1. Polarization

2. The polarization of a plane and monochromatic wave is the
curve traced out by the tip of the instantaneous electric field
vector at a fixed point in space as time evolves.

3. A real vector in ordinary three-dimensional Euclidean space is represented by an arrow.
A complex vector, on the other hand, is – in the general case – represented by an oriented ellipse. In some special cases, however, that ellipse reduces either to a straight line segment or to a circle.

14. Example

17. Right-handed elliptical polarization