Polarization of Light Helps to Better Understand Emission Sources in the Vicinity of Stellar-Mass Black Holes (Dissertation Defence, MSc Ilia Kosenkov, 8 Oct 2021, Astronomy)
Stellar-mass black holes that are part of binary systems sometimes show variable polarization of optical emission. The degree, angle and variability pattern of polarization is characteristic of the physical processes occurring in the vicinity of a black hole. By studying black holes astronomers learn how matter and energy behave under extreme conditions.