Optical characterization of an effective scattering coefficient using the spatial full width at half maximum

Abstract

In this paper, we present an experimental optical characterization of an effective scattering constant to describe light scattering in an undergraduate laboratory setting. The scattering of a 650-nm and 515-nm laser beam is studied by passing the beam through a scattering medium of variable thickness. The intensity distributions are imaged and analyzed to evaluate the spatial full width at half maximum under multiple scattering and examined for Gaussian behavior. Gaussian functions are fitted to extract beam widths as a function of propagation distance and medium thickness. The results show a wavelength-dependent comparison of scattering and demonstrate a simple, accessible approach to quantifying light transport in weakly-scattering media.