Polarized Light and Optical Systems surveys polarization effects in optical systems and their simulation by polarization ray tracing. For many optical systems, selecting good combinations of polarization elements is very difficult, requiring man-years of dedicated polarization engineering. Polarization critical optical systems, such as liquid crystal displays, VR and AR optics, and microlithography, present polarization challenges with difficult specifications. Polarization engineering is the task of designing, fabricating, testing, and mass producing with high yield, such polarization critical optical systems. Surveying the fundamentals of polarized light and properties of polarization elements, provides a foundation for understanding polarization ray tracing, simulating the nearly spherical waves in imaging systems to model the large set of polarization effects which occur: polarization elements, Fresnel equations, thin films, anisotropic materials, polarizing films, diffractive optical elements, stress birefringence, and thin films. The resulting polarization aberrations adversely affect the point spread function/matrix and optical transfer function/matrix of image forming optical systems. Polarization ray tracing examples include systems with retarders, crystal polarizers, vortex retarders, stress birefringence, fold mirrors, and lenses.