Optical Design and Polarization Analysis for Full-Polarization Underwater Imaging Lens

Abstract

Underwater polarization imaging has emerged as a fundamental technique for detecting and imaging underwater targets. However, the effectiveness of this technique is hampered by the low light intensity and optical system deformation induced by water pressure in deep-water environments, particularly for the detection of polarized signals. To address this issue, a wide-field-of-view oil-immersion lens tailored for deep-sea operations is designed, offering robust imaging performance and an extensive observation range. A Mueller matrix is deployed to scrutinize the polarization properties of the entire optical system across diverse fields of view, and the measurement errors in the polarization degree under incident polarization states are discussed. Simulation results demonstrate that the measurement error for linearly polarized light is greater than that for circularly polarized light. Therefore, the system adopts circularly polarized light as the active illumination source, characterized by minimal polarization effects and high detection accuracy. Finally, a deep-sea camera lens is produced and manufactured. The resulting lens is shown to pass a test in a hydrodynamic simulator machine, demonstrating that it can operate properly and capture images.

Keywords

• optical design
• polarization imaging
• deep-sea imaging
• circularly polarized light
• optical lens