Time-resolved coherent and incoherent components of forward light scattering in random media

Abstract

Angle- and time-resolved studies are presented for an ultrafast laser pulse propagating through a slab of random media in the intermediate scattering regime, where a coherent (ballistic) component coexists with a incoherent (diffusive) component in the forward-scattered light. The incoherent component can be approximated by diffusion theory when the thickness of the slab is greater than 10 transport mean free paths. The theoretical results from the two-frequency coherence function in the Rytov approximation are in qualitative but not quantitative agreement with the experimental results.