A radiative transfer framework for spatially-correlated materials

Abstract

We introduce a non-exponential radiative framework that takes into account the local spatial correlation of scattering particles in a medium. Most previous works in graphics have ignored this, assuming uncorrelated media with a uniform, random local distribution of particles. However, positive and negative correlation lead to slower- and faster-than-exponential attenuation respectively, which cannot be predicted by the Beer-Lambert law. As our results show, this has a major effect on extinction, and thus appearance. From recent advances in neutron transport, we first introduce our Extended Generalized Boltzmann Equation, and develop a general framework for light transport in correlated media. We lift the limitations of the original formulation, including an analysis of the boundary conditions, and present a model suitable for computer graphics, based on optical properties of the media and statistical distributions of scatterers. In addition, we present an analytic expression for transmittance in the case of positive correlation, and show how to incorporate it efficiently into a Monte Carlo renderer. We show results with a wide range of both positive and negative correlation, and demonstrate the differences compared to classic light transport.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jul 30, 2018
Source ID
10.1145/3197517.3201282

Entities

People

  • Adrián Jarabo
  • Carlos Aliaga
  • Diego Gutierrez

Organizations

  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
  • Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness
  • University of Zaragoza

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Aerosol Science/Aerosol Physics
  • Computer Vision.
  • Fluid Dynamics.