Spectral degree of linear polarization of light from healthy skin and melanoma

R. Ceolato (1) , M. Golzio (2) , C. Riou (1) , X. Orlik (1) , N. Riviere (1)

1 ONERA - The French Aerospace Lab [Toulouse]
2 IPBS - Institut de pharmacologie et de biologie structurale

A non-invasive optical technique, based on a supercontinuum laser source and hyperspectral sensors, is established to measure the spectral degree of linear polarization (DOLP) in a broad spectral range from 525 nm to 1000 nm. Several biomaterials of interest, such as healthy and cancerous skins, are considered. The spectral DOLP of melanoma, from 5 mm to 9 mm diameter, are measured and analyzed. An increase of the spectral DOLP is reported for 100% of the melanoma samples compared to healthy skin samples. The spectral DOLP of a given melanoma appears to be correlated to the stage of its development: the larger the melanoma, the higher the DOLP. Such trend could be explained by a decrease of the surface roughness along the evolution of the disease. In addition, a significant spectral dependence of the DOLP is reported for melanoma samples as it exhibits a decrease in the near infrared from 750 nm to 1000 nm.

Mots clés: MEDICAL OPTICS AND BIOTECHNOLOGY; BIOMATERIALS; POLARIMETRY; SCATTERING; POLARIZATION; DOLP; MELANOMA; SKIN

Domaines: Optique / photonique

R. Ceolato, M. Golzio, C. Riou, X. Orlik, N. Riviere. Spectral degree of linear polarization of light from healthy skin and melanoma. Optics Express, 2015, 23 (10), p. 13605-13612. ⟨10.1364/OE.23.013605⟩. ⟨hal-01229509⟩