Polarized structured illumination microscopy using polarization gratings for optical sectioning

Abstract

In this investigation, we describe polarized structured illumination microscopy based on polarization gratings to generate a stable polarized illumination pattern in an extensive area. The visibility of the illumination pattern is immediately calculated by using a polarizing pixelated camera, and the 3D surface profile of the specimen can be successfully reconstructed. Moreover, a polarization grating pair was used to reasonably eliminate the unexpected pattern caused by the polarization grating itself. To experimentally characterize the system performance, a step height standard specimen was measured. Moreover, the axial response for the visibility of the illumination pattern was discussed with the consideration of the spectral bandwidth of the source and the spatial coherence of incident light.