A precise method to determine the absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of turbid
media from the spatial distribution of light has been developed. It allows in vitro local
measurements on samples, and needs only one measurement performed by a linear CCD
detector. The intensity profile of the scattered light is characterized by the maximum of the
intensity and the full width at half maximum. These parameters have been related
theoretically to the absorption and reduced scattering coefficients. The theoretical approach …

The optical properties of various biological tissues have been investigated by the
measurement of the maximum intensity M and the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the
intensity profile of a scattered light beam. These two quantities have turned out to be highly
discriminating parameters for the different tissues under scrutiny: muscle, liver, adipose, and
gray and white brain matter. The inverse problem, ie, the computation of the absorption and
reduced scattering coefficients from M and FWHM, has been solved in the domains where …