Empirical model of the photon path length for a single fiber reflectance spectroscopy device

A reflectance spectroscopic device that utilizes a single fiber for both light delivery and collection has advantages over classical multi-fiber probes. This study presents a novel empirical relationship between the single fiber path length and the combined effect of both the absorption coefficient, mu(a) (range: 0.1 - 6 mm(-1)), and the reduced scattering coefficient, mu(S)' (range: 0.3 - 10 mm(-1)), for different anisotropy values (0.75 and 0.92), and is applicable to probes containing a wide range of fiber diameters (range: 200 - 2000 mu m). The results indicate that the model is capable of accurately predicting the single fiber path length over a wide range (r = 0.995; range: 180 - 3940 mu m) and predictions do not show bias as a function of either mu(a) or mu(S)'