Scattering and depolarization of linearly polarized waves by finitely conducting particles of irregular shape

Abstract

In this work a layer consisting of a large variety of randomly distributed finitely conducting particles with irregular shapes is assumed to be excited at infrared and optical frequencies by a linearly polarized wave. The resulting incoherent specific intensities, as well as the copolarized and cross polarized intensities, are evaluated. Both single scatter and multiple scatter results are presented for particles with smooth and rough surfaces, and the effects of particle surface roughness on the degree of polarization are considered in detail.