Measurement of transport mean-free path of light in thin systems

We extensively investigate in-plane light diffusion in systems with thicknesses larger than but comparable with the transport mean free path. By exploiting amplified spontaneous emission from dye molecules placed in the same holder of the sample, we obtain a directional probe beam precisely aligned to the sample plane. By comparing spatial intensity distribution of laterally leaking photons with predictions from random walk simulations, we extract accurate values of transport mean free path, opening the way to the investigation of a previously inaccessible kind of sample. (C) 2011 Optical Society of America