Polarized light propagation in biologic tissue and tissue phantoms

Vanitha Sankaran M.D.; Joseph T. Walsh Jr.; Duncan J. Maitland

doi:10.1117/12.381526

6 April 2000 Polarized light propagation in biologic tissue and tissue phantoms

Vanitha Sankaran M.D., Joseph T. Walsh Jr., Duncan J. Maitland

Proceedings Volume 4001, Saratov Fall Meeting '99: Optical Technologies in Biophysics and Medicine; (2000) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.381526
Event: Saratov Fall Meeting '99, 1999, Saratov, Russian Federation

Abstract

Imaging through biologic tissue relies on the discrimination of weakly scattered from multiply scattered photons. The degree of polarization can be used as the discrimination criterion by which to reject multiply scattered photons. Polarized light propagation through biologic tissue is typically studied using tissue phantoms consisting of dilute aqueous suspensions of microspheres. We show that, although such phantoms are designed to match the macroscopic scattering properties of tissue they do not accurately represent biologic tissue for polarization-sensitive studies. In common tissue phantoms, such as dilute Intralipid and dilute 1-micrometers -diameter polystyrene microsphere suspensions, we find that linearly polarized light is depolarized more quickly polarized light. In dense tissue, however, where scatterers are often located in close proximity to one another, circularly polarized light is depolarized similar to or more quickly than linearly polarized light. We also demonstrate that polarized light propagates differently in dilute versus densely packed microsphere suspensions, which may account for the differences seen between polarized light propagation in common dilute tissue phantoms versus dense biologic tissue.

Citation Download Citation

Vanitha Sankaran M.D., Joseph T. Walsh Jr., and Duncan J. Maitland "Polarized light propagation in biologic tissue and tissue phantoms", Proc. SPIE 4001, Saratov Fall Meeting '99: Optical Technologies in Biophysics and Medicine, (6 April 2000); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.381526

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