Confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy improvement by use of Mueller-matrix polarimetry

A new technique for improving the signal-to-noise ratio and the contrast in images recorded with a confocal scanning laser system is presented. The method is based on the incorporation of a polarimeter into the setup. After the spatially resolved Mueller matrix of a sample was calculated, images for incident light with different states of polarization were reconstructed, and both the best and the worst images were computed. In both the microscope and the opthalmoscope modes, the best images are better than the originals. In contrast, the worst images are poorer. This technique may be useful in different fields such as confocal microscopy and retinal imaging. (C) 2002 Optical Society of America.