Reduced light-scattering properties for mixtures of spherical particles: a simple approximation derived from Mie calculations.

ABSTRACT

The reduced scattering cross section per unit of volume Sigma'(s) identical withSigma(s)(1 - g) is an important parameter to describe light propagation in media with scattering and absorption. Mie calculations of the asymmetry factor g for nonabsorbing spheres and Q(sca), the ratio of the scattering cross section Sigma(s) and the particle cross section, show that Q(sca)(1 - g) = 3.28x(0.37)(m - 1)(2.09) is true to within a few percent, when the Mie parameters for relative refractive index m and size x are in the ranges of 1 < m radiation at two wavelengths is also independent of the size within the range mentioned, even for mixtures of different size spheres. The results seem promising for biomedical applications.