The dependence of the output Stokes parameters on the state of an arbitrarily located polarization controller in PMD mitigation schemes

The dependence of the instantaneous Stokes parameters, at the output of a transmission system, on the state of a polarization controller (PC) located anywhere in the system is analytically derived. Based on the analytical formalism, a novel characterization technique is introduced and used for finding the PC state that yields a maximum degree of polarization and optimal bit-error rate.