Synthesis and characterization of depolarizing samples based on the indices of polarimetric purity

In this work, we discuss the interest of using the indices of polarimetric purity (IPPs) as a criterion for the characterization and classification of depolarizing samples. We prove how differences in the depolarizing capability of samples, not seen by the commonly used depolarization index P_Δ, are identified by the IPPs. The above-stated result is analyzed from a theoretical point of view and experimentally verified through a set of polarimetric measurements. We show how the approach presented here can be useful in easily synthetizing depolarizing samples with controlled depolarizing features, just by properly combining low-cost fully polarizing elements (such as linear retarders or polarizers).