A method for reducing specular reflections in Mueller matrix imaging

Mueller matrix polarimetry has emerged as a powerful tool for non-destructive optical analysis of biological tissues and bioorganic materials, offering detailed insights into polarization-specific properties such as diattenuation, retardance, and depolarization. However, the accurate application of Mueller matrix polarimetry in biological media is often hindered by specular reflections, which obscure signals from deeper tissue layers and degrade the sample visualization and the polarimetric data quality. Existing methods to minimize specular reflection have limitations, especially in clinical or in-vivo settings where sample positioning is constrained. Here, we introduce a new approach for avoiding or reducing specular highlights without having to reduce light's intensity. By using near-cross-polarization states between the polarization state state generator and analyzer, we demonstrate that one can obtain an enhanced visualization of tissue structures, reduce the appearance of specular reflections and improve polarimetric contrast.