Abstract

We have observed that cross-polarized backscatter measured by optical coherence tomography of human skin in vivo is surprisingly strong. We identify and give evidence of its main origins: single scattering from nonspherical particles and multiple scattering by particles with sizes much larger than a wavelength. Our findings show that depolarized light scattered by dense large-diameter particles maintains a high degree of temporal coherence and that differential-polarization imaging improves contrast between particles of different sizes.

© 1998 Optical Society of America

Birefringence characterization of biological tissue by use of optical coherence tomography

M. J. Everett, K. Schoenenberger, B. W. Colston, and L. B. Da Silva
Opt. Lett. 23(3) 228-230 (1998)

Two-dimensional birefringence imaging in biological tissue by polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

Johannes F. de Boer, Thomas E. Milner, Martin J. C. van Gemert, and J. Stuart Nelson
Opt. Lett. 22(12) 934-936 (1997)

Two-dimensional depth-resolved Mueller matrix characterization of biological tissue by optical coherence tomography

Gang Yao and Lihong V. Wang
Opt. Lett. 24(8) 537-539 (1999)

Two-dimensional depth-resolved Mueller matrix of biological tissue measured with double-beam polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

Shuliang Jiao and Lihong V. Wang
Opt. Lett. 27(2) 101-103 (2002)

Determination of the depth-resolved Stokes parameters of light backscattered from turbid media by use of polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

Johannes F. de Boer, Thomas E. Milner, and J. Stuart Nelson
Opt. Lett. 24(5) 300-302 (1999)