When light diffuses in random media, the intensity decays and at the same time the polarization state is scrambled. As explanation for this apparent inseparability, theoretical work has identified a profound relation between length scales of optical transport and depolarization. Here, we experimentally confirm and quantify their proportionality with thickness-dependent depolarization measurements in colloidal suspensions of microscopic constituents. The observed equivalences accurately predict the nonlinear evolution rate of depolarization over a large range of penetration depths. Our results provide a simple relation, that connects light diffusion in strongly scattering media with measurable polarization signatures over wide spectral ranges and scatterer concentrations.
%0 Journal Article
%1 PhysRevA.105.053511
%A Gill, Maximilian
%A Gompf, Bruno
%A Dressel, Martin
%A Schnoering, Gabriel
%D 2022
%I American Physical Society
%J Phys. Rev. A
%K depolarisation optical-transport-lengths random-media
%N 5
%P 053511
%R 10.1103/PhysRevA.105.053511
%T Optical transport lengths quantifying depolarization in experiments on random media
%U https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevA.105.053511
%V 105
%X When light diffuses in random media, the intensity decays and at the same time the polarization state is scrambled. As explanation for this apparent inseparability, theoretical work has identified a profound relation between length scales of optical transport and depolarization. Here, we experimentally confirm and quantify their proportionality with thickness-dependent depolarization measurements in colloidal suspensions of microscopic constituents. The observed equivalences accurately predict the nonlinear evolution rate of depolarization over a large range of penetration depths. Our results provide a simple relation, that connects light diffusion in strongly scattering media with measurable polarization signatures over wide spectral ranges and scatterer concentrations.
@article{PhysRevA.105.053511,
abstract = {When light diffuses in random media, the intensity decays and at the same time the polarization state is scrambled. As explanation for this apparent inseparability, theoretical work has identified a profound relation between length scales of optical transport and depolarization. Here, we experimentally confirm and quantify their proportionality with thickness-dependent depolarization measurements in colloidal suspensions of microscopic constituents. The observed equivalences accurately predict the nonlinear evolution rate of depolarization over a large range of penetration depths. Our results provide a simple relation, that connects light diffusion in strongly scattering media with measurable polarization signatures over wide spectral ranges and scatterer concentrations.},
added-at = {2022-06-20T08:41:17.000+0200},
author = {Gill, Maximilian and Gompf, Bruno and Dressel, Martin and Schnoering, Gabriel},
biburl = {https://puma.ub.uni-stuttgart.de/bibtex/2ef1a7f2cacbf2ecf9195d80f787ae4e7/dr.helgakumric},
doi = {10.1103/PhysRevA.105.053511},
interhash = {bfc0c52cb3efb8e5d8380c4d73d9f743},
intrahash = {ef1a7f2cacbf2ecf9195d80f787ae4e7},
journal = {Phys. Rev. A},
keywords = {depolarisation optical-transport-lengths random-media},
month = may,
number = 5,
numpages = {9},
pages = 053511,
publisher = {American Physical Society},
timestamp = {2022-06-20T06:41:17.000+0200},
title = {Optical transport lengths quantifying depolarization in experiments on random media},
url = {https://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevA.105.053511},
volume = 105,
year = 2022
}
