Simulation of practical single-pixel wire-grid polarizers for superpixel stokes vector imaging arrays

Alan D. Raisanen; Michael D. Presnar; Zoran Ninkov; Kenneth D. Fourspring; Lingfei Meng; John P. Kerekes

doi:10.1117/1.OE.51.1.016201

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7 February 2012 Simulation of practical single-pixel wire-grid polarizers for superpixel stokes vector imaging arrays

Alan D. Raisanen, Michael D. Presnar, Zoran Ninkov, Kenneth D. Fourspring, Lingfei Meng, John P. Kerekes

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Optical Engineering, 51(1), 016201 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.51.1.016201

Abstract

An optical tracking sensor that produces images containing the state of polarization of each pixel can be implemented using individual wire-grid micropolarizers on each detector element of a solid-state focal plane array. These sensors can significantly improve identification and tracking of various man-made targets in cluttered, dynamic scenes such as urban and suburban environments. We present electromagnetic simulation results for wire-grid polarizers that can be fabricated on standard imaging arrays at three different technology nodes (an 80-, 250-, and 500-nm pitch) for use in polarization-sensitive detector arrays. The degradation in polarizer performance with the larger pitch grids is quantified. We also present results suggesting the performance degradation is not significant enough to affect performance in a man-made vehicle-tracking application.

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Alan D. Raisanen, Michael D. Presnar, Zoran Ninkov, Kenneth D. Fourspring, Lingfei Meng, and John P. Kerekes "Simulation of practical single-pixel wire-grid polarizers for superpixel stokes vector imaging arrays," Optical Engineering 51(1), 016201 (7 February 2012). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.51.1.016201

Published: 7 February 2012

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