Polarized Infrared Emissivity from Dew Droplets on a Surface

We model the infrared polarization emissivity from spherical particles on a plane surface. The emissivity and polarization is primarily a function of the density of particles multiplied by their cross-sectional area. The presence of particles tends to reduce the polarization. As the emission angle increases from near-normal incidence, the polarization tends to pass through a maximum, followed by a minimum and a final sharp rise at near grazing angles. The mechanism for this structure is the shadowing of different portions of the spherical particles by other particles.