Mueller matrices and the degree of polarization

This article shows that only polarizers, retarders, and improper rotation Mueller matrices do not decrease the degree of polarization for any input Stokes vector. On the other hand, a Mueller matrix does not increase the degree of polarization for any input Stokes vector if and only if it has an unp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Optics communications 1998-01, Vol.146 (1), p.11-14
Main Authors: Lu, Shih-Yau, Chipman, Russell A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Exact sciences and technology
Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications)
Jones matrix
Mueller matrix
Optics
Physics
Polarimetry
Polarization
Stokes vector
Wave optics
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Summary:This article shows that only polarizers, retarders, and improper rotation Mueller matrices do not decrease the degree of polarization for any input Stokes vector. On the other hand, a Mueller matrix does not increase the degree of polarization for any input Stokes vector if and only if it has an unpolarized Stokes vector as eigenvector. Furthermore, for any Mueller matrix an unpolarized incident Stokes vector always has the maximum gain in the degree of polarization. It is pointed out that a general Mueller matrix deforms the Poincaré sphere (for input Stokes vectors) into an ellipsoid (for output Stokes vectors). Finally, several inequalities involving the input and output degrees of polarization are derived.
ISSN:0030-4018
1873-0310
DOI:10.1016/S0030-4018(97)00554-3