Components of purity of a Mueller matrix.

The degree of polarimetric purity of a Mueller matrix, also called "depolarization index" [Opt. Acta 33, 185 (1986)] is expressed as a quadratic average of two contributions of different nature. The contribution due to the polarizance and diattenuation properties is given by a unique parameter called "degree of polarizance," and the complementary contribution due to nonpolarizing properties is given by a parameter called "degree of spherical purity." These two intrinsic quantities are useful in order to analyze the sources of the polarimetric purity of a material sample whose Mueller matrix has been measured and provide criteria for the classification of Mueller matrices.

[1]  R. Jones.  A New Calculus for the Treatment of Optical Systems. IV. , 1942 .

[2]  R. Chipman,et al.  Homogeneous and inhomogeneous Jones matrices , 1994 .

[3]  R. Sridhar,et al.  Normal form for Mueller Matrices in Polarization Optics , 1994 .

[4]  Alexander B. Kostinski,et al.  A Simple Necessary and Sufficient Condition on Physically Realizable Mueller Matrices , 1993 .

[5]  E. Pottier,et al.  Concept of polarization entropy in optical scattering , 1995 .

[6]  T. Tudor.  Non-Hermitian polarizers: a biorthogonal analysis. , 2006, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[7]  Rafael Espinosa-Luna,et al.  Q(M) and the depolarization index scalar metrics. , 2008, Applied optics.

[8]  R. Chipman,et al.  Degree of polarization surfaces and maps for analysis of depolarization. , 2004, Optics express.

[9]  S. Cloude.  Group theory and polarisation algebra , 1986 .

[10]  R. Chipman,et al.  Interpretation of Mueller matrices based on polar decomposition , 1996 .

[11]  J. P. Woerdman,et al.  Physical bounds to the entropy-depolarization relation in random light scattering. , 2005, Physical review letters.

[12]  E. Bernabeu,et al.  On the Q(M) depolarization metric , 2007 .

[13]  Jaan Praks,et al.  Alternatives to Target Entropy and Alpha Angle in SAR Polarimetry , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.

[14]  José Manuel Correas Dobato,et al.  GENERALIZED POLARIZATION ALGEBRA , 2003 .

[15]  Razvigor Ossikovski,et al.  Analysis of depolarizing Mueller matrices through a symmetric decomposition. , 2009, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[16]  Sudha,et al.  Polarization elements: a group-theoretical study. , 2000, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[17]  Tiberiu Tudor,et al.  Generalized observables in polarization optics , 2003 .

[18]  Shane R. Cloude,et al.  Conditions For The Physical Realisability Of Matrix Operators In Polarimetry , 1990, Optics & Photonics.

[19]  Z. Xing,et al.  On the Deterministic and Non-deterministic Mueller Matrix , 1992 .

[20]  R. Jones.  A New Calculus for the Treatment of Optical SystemsI. Description and Discussion of the Calculus , 1941 .

[21]  R. Muttiah,et al.  Eigenanalysis of dichroic, birefringent, and degenerate polarization elements: a Jones-calculus study. , 2007, Applied optics.

[22]  J. Gil.  Characteristic properties of Mueller matrices. , 2000, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[23]  Sudha,et al.  On the algebraic characterization of a Mueller matrix in polarization optics. I. Identifying a Mueller matrix from its N matrix , 1998 .

[24]  R. Muttiah,et al.  Conditions for polarization elements to be dichroic and birefringent. , 2005, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[25]  E. Bernabeu,et al.  A Depolarization Criterion in Mueller Matrices , 1985 .

[26]  C. Mee.  An eigenvalue criterion for matrices transforming Stokes parameters , 1993 .

[27]  Eusebio Bernabeu,et al.  Depolarization and polarization indices of an optical system , 1986 .

[28]  Eusebio Bernabeu,et al.  Obtainment of the polarizing and retardation parameters of a non-depolarizing optical system from the polar decomposition of its Mueller matrix , 1986 .

[29]  J. J. Gil,et al.  Polarimetric characterization of light and media - Physical quantities involved in polarimetric phenomena , 2007, 2002.04105.

[30]  Razvigor Ossikovski,et al.  Alternative depolarization criteria for Mueller matrices. , 2010, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[31]  R. Chipman.  Depolarization index and the average degree of polarization. , 2005, Applied optics.

[32]  L. Mandel,et al.  Relationship between Jones and Mueller matrices for random media , 1987 .

[33]  Russell A. Chipman,et al.  Mueller matrices and the degree of polarization , 1998 .

[34]  Razvigor Ossikovski,et al.  Canonical forms of depolarizing Mueller matrices. , 2010, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[35]  Tiberiu Tudor,et al.  Dirac-algebraic approach to the theory of device operators in polarization optics. , 2003, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.

[36]  George R. Bird,et al.  Pile-of-Plates Polarizers for the Infrared: Improvement in Analysis and Design , 1959 .

[37]  J. J. Gil,et al.  Invariant indices of polarimetric purity: Generalized indices of purity for n × n covariance matrices , 2011 .

[38]  Sudha,et al.  On the algebraic characterization of a Mueller matrix in polarization optics. II. Necessary and sufficient conditions for Jones-derived Mueller matrices , 1998 .

[39]  E. Bernabeu,et al.  Dealing depolarization of light in Mueller matrices with scalar metrics , 2010 .