Simultaneous retrieval of aerosol size and composition by multi-angle polarization scattering measurements

Changes of polarization state in aerosol scattering processes are sensitive to various microphysical properties of particles, such as size distribution and complex refractive index. In this work, we present a method to estimate the complex refractive indices (ACRI) and particle size distribution (PSD) of aerosols based on the measured polarization scattering signals using our multi-angle Stokes vector analysis system of individual particles. Then we use the probability density function (PDF) of aerosols to weight the Stokes vector and compare it with Mie scattering theory to iteratively retrieve the optimal ACRI and PSD. The experimental results of six kinds of aerosol samples support the validity and feasibility of our method, implying the important potential of polarization scattering information extraction applied in dynamic monitoring, quantitative retrieval and fine identification of aerosols.