PolGr-PolHolo: Polarization-Grating Enabled Polarization Holographic Imaging System

Quantitative polarization imaging has emerged as a powerful modality for probing anisotropic optical properties in biological and material samples. However, conventional polarization imaging techniques often suffer from limited spatial resolution, sequential data acquisition, and susceptibility to dynamic disturbances. To overcome these limitations, a full-field, quantitative polarization imaging approach based on polarization-grating enabled digital holography, termed PolGr-PolHolo, is presented. The proposed system employs a diffraction polarization grating to generate orthogonally polarized reference beams within an off-axis digital holography framework, enabling simultaneous interference with the object wave. This configuration allows multiplexed recording of polarization-resolved information in a single hologram. From the reconstructed complex wavefront, spatially resolved Stokes parameters are retrieved, facilitating quantitative extraction of polarization properties, including retardance, diattenuation, and fast-axis orientation. The approach is validated by imaging birefringent samples. The results demonstrate accurate reconstruction of polarization parameters with improved robustness against mechanical vibrations and temporal fluctuations. Compared to conventional polarization imaging techniques, the proposed method provides faster acquisition, full-field capability, and enhanced sensitivity to subtle anisotropic features. The presented PolGr-PolHolo framework offers a robust and efficient platform for quantitative polarization measurements, with potential applications in label-free biomedical imaging, characterization of stress-induced birefringence in materials, and analysis of complex scattering media.