4. Glossary

Aimantation (magnetization)

Generally designated by the symbol M, magnetization adds the contribution of atomically generated magnetic moments to the static magnetic field applied to a material.

For ferromagnets, we speak of saturated magnetization when all the moments are aligned in the direction of the exciting (or polarizing) magnetic field vector.

Polarization angle

Angle formed between the electric field vector (or magnetic field vector) of a plane wave and an arbitrary direction.

Geometric anisotropy

In the spirit of the article, geometric anisotropy refers to the diagonal elements of the permeability tensor, presented in matrix form. When these elements are all identical, the medium has a uniform permeability independent of the direction...