A method of evaluating crystallinity includes irradiating light from below a polycrystalline silicon substrate, allowing the irradiated light to pass through the polycrystalline silicon substrate and a circular polarizing plate disposed above the polycrystalline silicon substrate, measuring an intensity of light having passed through the circular polarizing plate at a location vertically above the circular polarizing plate, notifying that there is an error in a crystallinity of the polycrystalline silicon substrate when the measured intensity of the light is out of an error margin of a predetermined criterion intensity of light.

A method for molecular chirality detection is described. The method includes providing a substrate defining an array of hole-disks, each hole-disk coupled with an asymmetric optical cavity. Each asymmetric optical cavity having a back reflector separating a plasmonic pattern by an appropriate selection of thickness. The substrate is illuminated to simultaneously excite two degenerate localized surface plasmon modes producing a strong chiral near-field. The method may also include generating a characterization of chiral molecules on the substrate based on the strong chiral near-field. Substrates and detectors for molecular chirality detection are also described.

Disclosed herein are nanostructured plasmonic materials. The nanostructured plasmonic materials can include a first nanostructured layer comprising: a first layer of a first plasmonic material permeated by a first plurality of spaced-apart holes, wherein the first plurality of spaced apart holes comprise a first array; and a second nanostructured layer comprising a second layer of a second plasmonic material permeated by a second plurality of spaced-apart holes, wherein the second plurality of spaced apart holes comprise a second array; wherein the second nanostructured layer is located proximate the first nanostructured layer; and wherein the first principle axis of the first array is rotated at a rotation angle compared to the first principle axis of the second array.

Provided are a polarizing film imaging apparatus, a polarizing film inspection apparatus including the imaging apparatus, and a polarizing film inspection method using the imaging apparatus. The imaging apparatus includes: a light source that is configured to emit light toward a polarizing film to be inspected; an imaging unit that is arranged on an optical axis of the light source and on an opposite side to the light source with the polarizing film therebetween; and at least one of a circular polarizing plate arranged between the light source and the polarizing film, and a wavelength plate arranged between the polarizing film and the imaging unit.

Majorana photons are transmitted through a biological tissue sample to image the tissue. The Majorana photons have a circular polarization, a radial polarization or an azimuthal polarization. The transmitted photons are processed to produce a digital image of the biological tissue sample.

Apparatus and methods are disclosed for measuring polarization properties and phase information, for example as can be used in microscopy applications. According to one example of the disclosed technology, an apparatus includes a light source, an interferometer configured to receive light generated by the light source and split the received light into two split beam outputs. The split beam outputs including combined, interfering light beams. Two light sensors, each including a polarization-sensitive focal plane array receive a respective one of the split beam outputs from the interferometer. Thus, some examples of the disclosed technology allows for simultaneous or concurrent measurement of properties of light including intensity, wavelength, polarization, and phase. The polarization-sensitive focal plane array includes a number of macropixels, each of which includes superpixels having different polarization filtering properties, each of which includes one or morepixels, which comprise filters for different colors.

An optical device includes a door, a door control unit, a polarized light generation unit and a spectrum response analysis unit. The polarized light generation unit and the spectrum response analysis unit are located at a first side of the door. When the door is opened by the door control unit, a polarized light from the polarized light generation unit is transmitted through the door and externally projected on an under-test object at a second side of the door, so that a scattered light is generated. After the scattered light is returned back and transmitted through the door, the scattered light is projected on the spectrum response analysis unit, so that the spectrum response analysis unit performs a spectrum response analysis. The optical device has enhanced signal-to-noise ratio. Moreover, the optical device is capable of acquiring more explicit and diverse inherent information of the under-test object.

A polarization property image measurement device includes: a first radiation unit that radiates light beams in different polarization conditions onto a target object after subjecting the light beams to intensity modulation at frequencies different from one another; a light receiving unit including first photoelectric conversion units that photoelectrically convert the light beams having been radiated from the first radiation unit and scattered at the target object in correspondence to each of the different polarization conditions, and second photoelectric conversion units that photoelectrically convert visible light from the target object; and a processor that detects signals individually output from the first photoelectric conversion units at the different frequencies and differentiates each signal from other signals so as to determine an origin of the signal as one of the light beams; and creates an image of the target object based upon signals individually output from the second photoelectric conversion units.

Circular dichroism can be accurately measured even when a phase modulation element with a distortion component is used. A circular dichroism measuring method using a circular dichroism measuring device 2 includes a step of measuring Ip(t) (S101: phase amount change acquisition step), a step of measuring Is(t) (S102: sample data acquisition step), a step of converting Ip(t) to (t) (S103: phase amount change acquisition step), a step of converting Is(t) to Is() (S104: analysis step/Is() calculation step), and a step of performing curve fitting to calculate matrix elements S00, S02, and S03 (S105: analysis step/matrix element calculation step).

The present disclosure in some aspects provides methods for the controlled merging of emulsion droplets, which can be used to assemble useful compositions such as droplets (e.g., stabilized micelles) containing a precise combination of analytes and/or analytical reagents. In some embodiments, disclosed herein is a method, e.g., for detecting the presence/absence, a level or amount, and/or an activity of an analyte in a sample, comprising merging two or more emulsion droplets such that an interaction between an analyte and an analyte-interacting reagent occurs in the merged droplet. The two or more emulsion droplets may be merged using a method for the controlled merging of emulsion droplets disclosed herein.