Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 17, 2026

Polarization-Sensitive Two-Photon Microscopy for a Label-Free Amyloid Structural Characterization
Published on: September 8, 2023
Double Stokes polarimetry of birefringent structures
Viktoras Mazeika1,2, Mykolas Maciulis1, Kamdin Mirsanaye3
1Laser Research Centre, Faculty of Physics, Vilnius University, Vilnius, LT-10222, Lithuania.
Birefringence in collagen fibers impacts second-harmonic generation (SHG) polarimetry. Double Stokes polarimetry (DSP) can still characterize collagen and retrieve fiber orientation, even with birefringence effects in thicker samples.
Area of Science:
- Biophysics
- Optical Imaging
- Materials Science
Background:
- Collagen fiber birefringence affects polarized light interactions.
- Second-harmonic generation (SHG) polarimetry is sensitive to collagen structure.
- Understanding birefringence is crucial for accurate SHG polarimetric interpretation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of collagen fiber birefringence on Double Stokes polarimetry (DSP) measurements.
- To evaluate the utility of DSP for collagen characterization in the presence of birefringence.
- To determine the feasibility of retrieving collagen fiber orientation using DSP across varying sample thicknesses.
Main Methods:
- Imaging unstained rat tail tendon sections of varying thicknesses (≈10 μm and ≈80 μm).
- Applying Double Stokes polarimetry (DSP) techniques to analyze polarimetric and ultrastructural parameters.
- Analyzing the influence of phase retardation introduced by birefringence on SHG signals.
Main Results:
- In thin sections (≈10 μm), birefringence effects are negligible, but parameters indicate complex susceptibility due to fiber chirality.
- In thicker sections (≈80 μm), birefringence significantly alters DSP parameters.
- Approximate in-plane collagen fiber orientation can still be retrieved from thicker samples using DSP.
Conclusions:
- DSP parameters are influenced by collagen fiber birefringence, especially in thicker samples.
- Despite birefringence, DSP enables rapid collagen characterization.
- DSP is suitable for large-area histopathological investigations requiring collagen analysis.
More Related Videos
08:49Multimodal Nonlinear Hyperspectral Chemical Imaging Using Line-Scanning Vibrational Sum-Frequency Generation Microscopy
Published on: December 1, 2023
07:34Layer Microdissection of Tricuspid Valve Leaflets for Biaxial Mechanical Characterization and Microstructural Quantification
Published on: February 10, 2022
Related Concept Videos
Stokes' Law
The expression for the force on a solid spherical object in a fluid is called Stokes' law. Stokes' law is valid only for low Reynolds...
¹H NMR: Complex Splitting
Splitting diagrams or splitting tree diagrams are routinely used to depict such complex couplings. While drawing splitting diagrams, the splitting with the larger coupling constant is usually applied first.
¹³C NMR: Distortionless Enhancement by Polarization Transfer (DEPT)
Measuring Reaction Rates