Citation:
Gangnus S V, Matcher S J and Meglinski I V (2004) Monte Carlo modeling of polarized light propagation in biological tissues, Laser Physics, 14 (6): 886-891
Abstract:
The application of polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT)
creates new possibilities for biomedical imaging. In this work, we present a
numerical simulation of the signal from a PS-OCT interferometer. We explore the
possibility to retrieve information concerning the optical birefringence
properties of multiple layered tissues from the depth-resolved PS-OCT
interferometric signal in the presence of strong elastic light scattering. Our
simulation is based on a Monte Carlo algorithm for the propagation of polarized
light in a birefringent multiple scattering medium. Confocal and time-gated
detection are also included. To describe the polarization state of light, we use
the Jones formalism, which reduces the calculation time compared with the full
Stokes-Müller formalism. To analyse the polarization state of the partially
polarized back-scattered light, we applied a standard method using the Stokes
vector, which is derived from the Jones vector. In this work, we examined the
Stokes vector variations with depth for different tissue types. The oscillations
of the Stokes vector are clearly demonstrated in the case of a uniform
birefringent medium. We also investigated a two-layered tissue with a different
birefringence of each layer. The Stokes vector variation with depth is compared
to the uniform case and used to assess the depth-sensitivity of PS-OCT. Our
simulation results are also compared with published experimental results of
other groups