 During that time he deployed it in crucial experiments involving polarization, birefringence, and optical rotation, all of which contributed to the eventual acceptance of his transverse-wave theory of light.Incident electromagnetic waves (such as light) consist of transverse vibrations in the electric and magnetic fields; these are proportional to and at right angles to each other and may therefore be represented by (say) the electric field alone.When striking an interface, the electric field oscillations can be resolved into two perpendicular components, known as the "s" and "p" components, which are parallel to the "surface" and the "plane" of incidence, respectively; in other words, the "s" and "p" components are respectively "square" and "parallel" to the plane of incidence.