Polarisation optics for biomedical and clinical applications: a review

Chao He; Honghui He; Jintao Chang; Binguo Chen; Hui Ma; Martin J Booth

doi:10.1038/s41377-021-00639-x

Polarisation optics for biomedical and clinical applications: a review

Light Sci Appl. 2021 Sep 22;10(1):194. doi: 10.1038/s41377-021-00639-x.

Authors

Chao He¹, Honghui He^{2

3}, Jintao Chang^{4

5}, Binguo Chen^{4

6}, Hui Ma^{4

7

5}, Martin J Booth⁸

Affiliations

¹ Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PJ, UK. chao.he@eng.ox.ac.uk.
² Guangdong Engineering Center of Polarisation Imaging and Sensing Technology, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, 518055, Shenzhen, China. he.honghui@sz.tsinghua.edu.cn.
³ Institute of Biopharmaceutical and Health Engineering, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, 518055, Shenzhen, China. he.honghui@sz.tsinghua.edu.cn.
⁴ Guangdong Engineering Center of Polarisation Imaging and Sensing Technology, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, 518055, Shenzhen, China.
⁵ Department of Physics, Tsinghua University, 100084, Beijing, China.
⁶ Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tsinghua University, 100084, Beijing, China.
⁷ Institute of Biopharmaceutical and Health Engineering, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, 518055, Shenzhen, China.
⁸ Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PJ, UK. martin.booth@eng.ox.ac.uk.

Abstract

Many polarisation techniques have been harnessed for decades in biological and clinical research, each based upon measurement of the vectorial properties of light or the vectorial transformations imposed on light by objects. Various advanced vector measurement/sensing techniques, physical interpretation methods, and approaches to analyse biomedically relevant information have been developed and harnessed. In this review, we focus mainly on summarising methodologies and applications related to tissue polarimetry, with an emphasis on the adoption of the Stokes-Mueller formalism. Several recent breakthroughs, development trends, and potential multimodal uses in conjunction with other techniques are also presented. The primary goal of the review is to give the reader a general overview in the use of vectorial information that can be obtained by polarisation optics for applications in biomedical and clinical research.

Publication types

Review