Light diffusion through a turbid parallelepiped

Solutions of the diffusion approximation to the radiative transport equation are derived for a turbid (rectangular) parallelepiped using the method of image sources and applying extrapolated boundary conditions. The derived solutions are compared with Monte Carlo simulations in the steady-state and time domains. It is found that the diffusion theory is in good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations provided that the light is detected sufficiently far from the incident beam. Applications of the derived solutions, including the determination of the optical properties of the turbid parallelepiped, are discussed. (c) 2005 Optical Society of America.