Past exam of the short options paper shared by Prelims and Parts A and B of the physics course of the University of Oxford / 2017 / S3 / 3 / 1

For a fixed propagation direction and spatial mode, a photon has two independent transverse polarization amplitudes. Orthogonal horizontal and vertical states span its two-dimensional Hilbert space: $\alpha |H⟩+\beta |V⟩$, with $|\alpha {|}^2+|\beta {|}^2=1$. Polarization analyzers measure bases in this space, and phase plates implement transformations of its relative amplitudes. Additional spatial or frequency modes enlarge the space and must not be silently discarded.