Mueller Matrix Method Research Articles

Monte carlo simulations for tuning optical properties in a two-stage liquid crystal retarder system via Mueller matrix method

Monte carlo simulations for tuning optical properties in a two-stage liquid crystal retarder system via Mueller matrix method

Characterization of polarization properties of colorectal cancer using decomposition Mueller matrix method

Rectal cancer is the third most prevalent cancer diagnosed and is traditionally screened using colonoscopy. Meanwhile, polarization characteristic measurement has emerged as an attractive alternative in recent years owing to its deep analysis of the structure of samples and non-invasive nature. Accordingly, this study employed the Mueller matrix decomposition method to measure the effective optical parameters of 100 slices from 20 healthy rectal tissue samples and 100 slices from 20 cancerous rectal tissue samples. The mean values and expression levels of the linear birefringence, circular birefringence, linear dichroism, circular dichroism, and depolarization index properties of the samples were compared using t-tests and ANOVA tests. The experimental results showed that the linear birefringence, orientation angle of linear dichroism, and values of linear dichroism and circular dichroism showed significant differences between the different tissue types. Thus, these parameters may serve as useful biomarkers for the diagnosis of rectal cancer.

Depolarization of metal surfaces based on Mueller and integral equation method

This paper delves into the depolarization phenomenon of materials using the integral equation method and Mueller matrix method. In the integral equation method, it is observed that depolarization trends with roughness are similar at different wavelengths, but numerical differences exist. The results are well-supported by both theory and experiments. Specifically, at 1064 nm wavelength, materials exhibit smaller depolarization peaks, smoother trends, and right-shifted peaks compared to 633 nm. Additionally, the polarization characteristics of materials may change with varying incident polarization states. The Mueller matrix method investigates the depolarization trend with varying incident angles and different roughness levels. It reveals a gradual increase in depolarization with the incident angle until 60°, followed by a rapid rise, reaching a peak around 80°. Moreover, materials with higher absorption coefficients exhibit stronger depolarization effects. Overall, this research uncovers the impact of absorption and scattering on the polarization properties of materials, providing valuable insights for future studies in polarization recognition.

Decomposition Mueller matrix polarimetry for enhanced miRNA detection with antimonene-based surface plasmon resonance sensor and DNA-linked gold nanoparticle signal amplification

A decomposition Mueller matrix method is proposed for detection of miRNA and enhanced by using a surface plasmon resonance (SPR). In the proposed approach, a Mueller matrix decomposition method is employed to extract the linear birefringence (LB) and circular dichroism (CD) properties of the miRNA sample. The accuracy of the LB and CD measurements is enhanced through the use of a high-resolution antimonene-based SPR prism coupler with DNA-linked gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated by measuring the LB orientation angle (α) and CD property (R) of two miRNA aqueous solutions (hsa-miR-125-5p and hsa-miR-21-5p) over the concentration range of 0∼1000 fM in both cases. The results show that, for both samples, α and R vary linearly with the change in the miRNA concentration. Furthermore, the values of α and R obtained for the two samples are quantifiably different, and hence the selectivity of the proposed SPR sensor is confirmed. Overall, the results highlight the potential of the proposed sensor as a valuable tool for miRNA detection with prospective applications in cancer diagnosis.

Antimonene-based surface plasmon resonance with antibody S9.6 signal amplification for miRNA detection

This study investigates the efficacy of surface plasmon resonance sensors incorporating antimonene for the enhanced detection of microRNA (miRNA). The differential Mueller matrix method is employed to extract linear birefringence (LB, α) and circular dichroism (CD, R) of the miRNA sample from the measurements obtained using a surface plasmon resonance prism coupler and a self-built Stokes polarimetry system. The intensity of the detection signal received from the SPR coupler is amplified through the application of a thin antibody S9.6 layer deposited on the sensor surface. The values of α and R of two miRNA sequences, namely hsa-miR-21-5p and hsa-miR-125-5p over the concentration range of 0–1000 fM. The surface plasmon resonance sensor shows a resolution of 21.29 fM for miR-21-5p detection and 27.65 fM for miR-125-5p detection. In general, the proposed antimonene-based SPR sensor provides a useful tool for miRNA detection at the femtomole level and thus contributes to the advancement of cancer diagnostic applications.

Enantiomers Self-Sort into Separate Counter-Twisted Ribbons of the Fddd Liquid Crystal─Antiferrochirality and Parachirality.

The recently discovered orthorhombic liquid crystal (LC) phase of symmetry Fddd is proving to be widespread. In this work, a chiral hydroxybutyrate linkage is inserted into the molecular core of hexacatenar rodlike compounds, containing a thienylfluorenone fluorophore. In addition to more usual tools, the methods used include grazing-incidence X-ray scattering, modulated differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), flash DSC with rates up to 6000 K/s, and chiro-optical spectroscopies using Mueller matrix method, plus conformational mapping. Although pure R and S enantiomers form only a strongly chiral hexagonal columnar LC phase (Colh*), the racemic mixture forms a highly ordered Fddd phase with 4 right- and 4 left-handed twisted ribbon-like columns traversing its large unit cell. In that structure, the two enantiomers locally deracemize and self-sort into the columns of their preferred chirality. The twisted ribbons in Fddd, with a 7.54 nm pitch, consist of stacked rafts, each containing ∼2 side-by-side molecules, the successive rafts rotated by 17°. In contrast, an analogous achiral compound forms only the columnar phase. The multiple methods used gave a comprehensive picture and helped in-depth understanding not only of the Fddd phase but also of the "parachiral" Colh* in pure enantiomers with irregular helicity, whose chirality is compared to the magnetization of a paramagnet in a field. Unusual short-range ordering effects are also described. An explanation of these phenomena is proposed based on conformational analysis. Surprisingly, the isotropic-columnar transition is extremely fast, completing within ∼20 ms. A clear effect of phase on UV-vis absorption and emission is observed.

Mueller transform matrix neural network for underwater polarimetric dehazing imaging.

Polarization dehazing imaging has been used to restore images degraded by scattering media, particularly in turbid water environments. While learning-based approaches have shown promise in improving the performance of underwater polarimetric dehazing, most current networks rely heavily on data-driven techniques without consideration of physics principles or real physical processes. This work proposes, what we believe to be, a novel Mueller transform matrix network (MTM-Net) for underwater polarimetric image recovery that considers the physical dehazing model adopting the Mueller matrix method, significantly improving the recovery performance. The network is trained with a loss function that combines content and pixel losses to facilitate detail recovery, and is sped up with the inverse residuals and channel attention structure without decreasing image recovery quality. A series of ablation experiment results and comparative tests confirm the performance of this method with a better recovery effect than other methods. These results provide deeper understanding of underwater polarimetric dehazing imaging and further expand the functionality of polarimetric dehazing method.

Change of the polarization properties of the human dermis with directions of incident and observation

In this work, a simplified cylinder-birefringence optical model of the human skin dermis model is reported. The actual polarization parameters of human fingernail skin were measured. And the accuracy and stability of the Mueller matrix polarization decomposition (MMPD) and the direct Mueller matrix (DMM) methods were compared under different incident and scattering angles. One main novelty of the present work is that the value of birefringence of the skin dermis was obtained from images of living human index finger nails by using a polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography device. The results obtained in this work provide a basis for the selection of incident and scattering angles when measuring biological samples containing fibrous structures in the future.

Generation of Circular Dichroism from Superposed Magnetically Oriented Magnetic Nanoparticles

Circular dichroism (CD) spectra were observed for the doubly superposed film–film and solution–solution samples, which all contained magnetically oriented achiral iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). The observed CD spectra critically depended on the angle difference, Δθ, between the orientation axes of MNPs in the superposed samples, giving the maximum CD value at the angle of Δθ = 45°. In a single solution cell sample with doubly superposed magnetic fields also, similar CD spectra depending on the angle difference between the magnetic fields were observed. These observed CD spectra were successfully reconstructed from the observed linear dichroism (LD) and linear birefringence (LB) spectra of each sample by the use of a superposed Mueller matrix method. Furthermore, triply and quadruply superposed solution samples exhibited the maximum CD spectra at the angle differences of Δθ = 30 and 22.5°, respectively, as suggested by the superposed Mueller matrix calculation. Thus, the origin of all CD spectra observed for the superposed achiral MNP samples has been quantitatively assigned to the helical combinations of LD and LB spectra of the magnetic field-induced optically oriented MNPs.

Combined Jones and Mueller matrix method for the evaluation the optical rotation and circular dichroism in chiral medium

Optical activity and circular dichroism are the intrinsic properties of chiral medium. The control of these proprieties of a medium has drawn considerable attention due to the recent developments due to recent developments in the field of materials and the deeper understanding of light-matter interaction in chiral structures media. With the extensive use of optical polarimetric technic, the relationships between the parameters related to optical activity (optical rotation and circular dichroism) and the Mueller matrix elements have been derived. In this work, we begin with a presentation of a theoretical model for the determination of the Jones and the Mueller matrices, whose objective is to identify pairs of this Mueller matrix elements suitable for the measurement of the optical rotation (OR) and circular dichroism (CD) for incident waves normally to a chiral medium. Then, an experimental configuration to determine the Mueller matrix is described. These investigations have potential applications in medicine, biochemistry, defense and for the homeland security. Some of the merits of the method, such as, a simple optical set-up, high accuracy, low cost and easier operation.

RESEARCH OF THE INFLUENCE OF POLARIZED UV RADIATION ON THE STRUCTURE OF PHOTOSENSIBLE BIOPOLIMER BY THE MUELLER

The study of dispersed media of biological origin by the methods of optics of light-scattering media is used to identify the influence of the shape, orientation structure and polydispersity of the components of this medium on its optical characteristics. A comprehensive study of the characteristics of light scattering and absorption makes it possible to detect physiological and morphological changes in cells caused by temperature and chemical factors, as well as to conduct a rapid qualitative analysis. Given that the light scattering matrix contains all the information about the dispersed medium available by optical methods, it is advisable to use the Mueller matrix method to study the biological environment. Experimental studies of the effect of polarized UV radiation on the structure of amphiphilic macromolecules composing the light-sensitive purple membrane were carried out. Polarization characteristics and Mueller matrix of thin films containing such photoactive biopolymers were measured.

Comparison of similar Mueller and Jones matrix method in catheter based polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography

Catheter based polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT) can provide composition information of coronary atherosclerotic plaque beyond the intensity based OCT, but it encounters a notable challenge that is how to reduce polarization properties variations owing to a rapidly rotating optical fiber in the catheter. Similar Jones matrix (SJM) and similar Mueller matrix (SMM) based polarization determination methods can provide a stable phase retardation imaging in a catheter based PS-OCT. In this paper, we systematically contrast SJM and SMM methods. Firstly, we theoretically illustrate the discrepancy between the eigenvalue decomposition in SJM and the polar decomposition in SMM. We find the SMM can reduce phase retardation error caused by non-coaxial diattenuation using polar decomposition. Secondly, we present a real incoherent averaging method in SMM. We find that incoherent averaging in SMM avoids a time-consuming global phase collection and more effectively reduce noise compared with complex coherent averaging in SJM. By polarization imaging for multiple biological tissues using a catheter based PS-OCT, we experimentally manifest that the areas with high diattenuation are highly correlated to the difference between images processed by SJM and SMM. At the same time, the SMM with incoherent averaging has a better performance than the SJM with coherent averaging especially at areas with low signal to noise ratio (SNR).

3D Mueller Matrix Reconstruction of the Optical Anisotropy Parameters of Myocardial Histopathology Tissue Samples

Diseases affecting myocardial tissues are currently a leading cause of death in developed nations. Fast and reliable techniques for analysing and understanding how tissues are affected by disease and respond to treatment are fundamental to combating the effects of heart disease. A 3D Mueller matrix method that reconstructs the linear and circular birefringence and dichroism parameters has been developed to image the biological structures in myocardial tissues. The required optical data is gathered using a Stokes polarimeter and then processed mathematically to recover the individual optical anisotropy parameters, expanding on existing 2D Mueller matrix implementations by combining with a digital holography approach. Changes in the different optical anisotropy parameters are rationalised with reference to the general tissue structure, such that the structures can be identified from the anisotropy distributions. The first to fourth order statistical moments characterising the distribution of the parameters of the optical anisotropy of the polycrystalline structure of the partially depolarising layer of tissues in different phase sections of their volumes are investigated and analysed. The third and fourth order statistical moments are found to be the most sensitive to changes in the phase and amplitude anisotropy. The possibility of forensic medical differentiation of death in cases of acute coronary insufficiency (ACI) and coronary heart disease (CHD) is considered as a diagnostic application. The optimal phase plane (θ∗=0.7rad) has been found, in which excellent differentiation accuracy is achieved ACI and CHD -Ac(ΔZ4(θ∗,ΦL,ΔL))=93.05%÷95.8%. A comparative analysis of the accuracy of the Mueller-matrix reconstruction of the parameters of the optical anisotropy of the myocardium in different phase planes (θ=0.9radandθ=1.2rad), as well as the 2D Mueller-matrix reconstruction method was carried out. This work demonstrates that a 3D Mueller matrix method can be used to effectively analyse the optical anisotropy parameters of myocardial tissues with potential for definitive diagnostics in forensic medicine.

Forensic medical evaluation of hemorrhages into the brain of traumatic and non-traumatic genesis by the Mueller matrix microscopy of circular dichroism

The aim of the work is to develop forensic criteria for differentiation of hemorrhages of traumatic and non-traumatic genesis by digital Mueller matrix (MM) polarization microscopy of histological sections of human brain substance (HBS).Material and methods. Native histological preparations of HBS from 32 corpses with ischemic stroke (1 group), 35 corpses with hemorrhages of traumatic origin (2 groups), 33 corpses with hemorrhages in HBS of non-traumatic genesis (3 group) and 30 corpses caused by acute coronary insufficiency (4 control group). The method of research is azimuthal-invariant MM microscopy of circular dichroism (CD) of histological sections of the brain.Results. The results of studies of the coordinate and statistical structure of maps of the size of values at the points of digital microscopic images of histological sections of HBS of the dead of all groups revealed a coordinate-inhomogeneous structure of all distributions of the size of the CD of microscopic images of histological sections of the dead of all groups. Probable distributions that characterize MM invariants CD maps of histological sections of brain samples from all groups have a small scatter of values of the statistical moment of the 2nd order, as well as significant values of statistical moments of the 3rd and 4th orders.Conclusion. The efficiency of using the Mueller-matrix mapping method in diagnosing of hemorrhage genesis in the brain substance in the differentiation of the set of samples of control and experimental groups reaches a satisfactory level - 77% - 78%.

Polarization singularity analysis of Mueller-matrix invariants of optical anisotropy of biological tissues samples in cancer diagnostics

An approach of azimuthally invariant Mueller-matrix description of the formation of polarization singularities networks of object fields of optically anisotropic biological tissues is proposed. The main formation scenarios of the topological polarization-singular structure of the boundary field of networks of optically anisotropic cylinders are determined by means of computer simulation. In order to assess the polarization-singular structure of the object field of real biological tissues, an original Mueller-matrix method of statistical analysis of the number of L and C points has been developed.

3D Mueller matrix mapping of layered distributions of depolarisation degree for analysis of prostate adenoma and carcinoma diffuse tissues

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer globally in men, and in some countries is now the most diagnosed form of cancer. It is necessary to differentiate between benign and malignant prostate conditions to give accurate diagnoses. We aim to demonstrate the use of a 3D Mueller matrix method to allow quick and easy clinical differentiation between prostate adenoma and carcinoma tissues with different grades and Gleason scores. Histological sections of benign and malignant prostate tumours, obtained by radical prostatectomy, were investigated. We map the degree of depolarisation in the different prostate tumour tissues using a Mueller matrix polarimeter set-up, based on the superposition of a reference laser beam with the interference pattern of the sample in the image plane. The depolarisation distributions can be directly related to the morphology of the biological tissues. The dependences of the magnitude of the 1st to 4th order statistical moments of the depolarisation distribution are determined, which characterise the distributions of the depolarisation values. To determine the diagnostic potential of the method three groups of histological sections of prostate tumour biopsies were formed. The first group contained 36 adenoma tissue samples, while the second contained 36 carcinoma tissue samples of a high grade (grade 4: poorly differentiated—4 + 4 Gleason score), and the third group contained 36 carcinoma tissue samples of a low grade (grade 1: moderately differentiated—3 + 3 Gleason score). Using the calculated values of the statistical moments, tumour tissues are categorised as either adenoma or carcinoma. A high level (> 90%) accuracy of differentiation between adenoma and carcinoma samples was achieved for each group. Differentiation between the high-grade and low-grade carcinoma samples was achieved with an accuracy of 87.5%. The results demonstrate that Mueller matrix mapping of the depolarisation distribution of prostate tumour tissues can accurately differentiate between adenoma and carcinoma, and between different grades of carcinoma. This represents a first step towards the implementation of 3D Mueller matrix mapping for clinical analysis and diagnosis of prostate tumours.

Embossed topographic depolarisation maps of biological tissues with different morphological structures

Layered topographic maps of the depolarisation due to diffuse biological tissues are produced using a polarisation-holographic Mueller matrix method approach. Histological sections of myocardial tissue with a spatially structured optically anisotropic fibrillar network, and parenchymal liver tissue with a polycrystalline island structure are successfully mapped. The topography of the myocardium maps relates to the scattering multiplicity within the volume and the specific morphological structures of the biological crystallite networks. The overall depolarisation map is a convolution of the effects of these two factors. Parenchymal liver tissues behave broadly similarly, but the different biological structures present cause the degree of scattering multiplicity to increase more rapidly with increasing phase. Through statistical analysis, the dependences of the magnitudes of the first to fourth order statistical moments are determined. These moments characterise the changing distributions of the depolarisation values through the volume of biological tissues with different morphological structures. Parenchymal liver tissue depolarisation maps are characterised by larger mean and variance, and less skewness and kurtosis, compared to the distributions for the myocardium. This work demonstrates that a polarisation-holographic Mueller matrix method can be applied to the assessment of the 3D morphology of biological tissues, with applications in disease diagnosis.

Measurement of the degree of polarisation of thermally modified Scots pine using a Stokes imaging polarimeter

This study measured the polarised light reflected from the surface of thermally modified Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood using a Stokes imaging polarimeter. The data were analysed using the Mueller matrix method. The Scots pine boards were heat treated in an oven at temperatures of 160 ºC, 200 ºC and 220 ºC, with a heat treatment time of 3 h at the maximum temperature. The results indicated that the chemical composition of the thermally modified wood underwent a permanent transformation, leading to a change in the degree of polarisation of the reflected light. The presented method provides useful information for inspecting the quality of thermally modified wood products.

Influence of the Complex Refractive Index of Underwater Suspended Particles on the Transmission Characteristics of Polarized Light

The effects of different complex refractive indices of underwater suspended particles on the polarization characteristics of forward and backward scattering of polarized photons are analyzed by simulation experiments to study the transmission characteristics of polarized light as influenced by underwater suspended particles. The Mie scattering theory is used to establish the scattering model of underwater photon transmission. The Mueller matrix and Meridian Planes Monte Carlo method are adopted to simulate the process of photon radiation transmission in the scattering medium. Simulation results show that the polarization degree of the scattered linearly polarized light is less affected than the scattered circularly polarized light by the refractive index parameter in the scattering system. As the absorption coefficient increases, the polarization-maintaining ability of the forward scattered linearly polarized light is enhanced, whereas the degree of circular polarization of the backward scattered circularly polarized light is periodically changed.

Features of light scattering on mosaic layers composed of structurally similar birefringent domains

ABSTRACTThe two-point generalized Mueller matrix method and phase screen approximation are applied to determine features of light scattering on mosaic birefringent layers composed of structurally similar domains. Two types of mosaic birefringent layers are considered: mosaic birefringent layers composed of identical non-chiral domains and statistically non-chiral layers composed of structurally similar (but generally not identical) domains. Analytical expressions for matrix operators that connect state vectors of the scattered and non-scattered components with the state vector of the incident beam are derived in terms of statistical structural characteristics of the layer. Based on the theoretical approach developed, some optical phenomena characteristic of mosaic birefringent layers, such as selective light scattering and inversion of circular polarization upon scattering, are explained. The effect of the degree of similarity of domains on the scattering properties of the layer is analyzed. Illustrative experimental examples are given.Abbreviations: LC: liquid crystal; NRPA layer: nematic random planar alignment layer; NPMB layer: non-planar mosaic birefringent layer; RIJM theory: rotationally invariant Jones matrix theory; SMB layer: simple mosaic birefringent layer; SNCM layer: statistically non-chiral mosaic layer