Abstract
Methods for the enhancement of domain structure observation have been implemented on a polarized light microscope connected via a video camera and frame grabber to a personal computer. Several modes of non-informative optically inactive background subtraction from the useful image formed due to the optical activity of anisotropic samples are discussed. A versatile method of image processing with the aid of a double-beam polarizing splitter forming two independent optical channels with inverted color or grayscale images of the same area of the sample is proposed. The method allows background subtraction in a real-time regime.