Polar decompositions of negative-determinant Mueller matrices featuring nondiagonal depolarizers.

We generalize an existing algebraic procedure for the polar decomposition of Mueller matrices with negative determinants [Opt. Commun.281, 2406 (2008)OPCOB80030-401810.1016/j.optcom.2007.12.076] to the case of nondiagonal depolarizer matrix factors. The generalized procedure is applied to experimental Mueller matrices illustrating its potential for the phenomenological interpretation of complex polarimetric data.