Abstract

We assess the validity and possible use of a simple formula for the complex effective refractive index of a colloidal suspension of very small particles obtained from the quasi-crystalline approximation. This approximation takes into account the so-called dependent scattering effects, which are strongest, in relative terms, in suspensions of non-absorbing nanometer-sized particles. We test experimentally the predictions of the model for the extinction of light in dispersions of sodium dodecyl sulfate micelles in tri-distilled water. We find that the theoretical model can be fitted to the experimental data and provide estimates of the micelles’ size and the minimum distance between each other in suspension.

© 2018 Optical Society of America

Assessment of the characterization of nonabsorbing nanoparticles in suspension from effective optical properties

R. Márquez-Islas, C. Sánchez-Pérez, and A. García-Valenzuela
Appl. Opt. 54(31) 9082-9092 (2015)

Extinction spectra of suspensions of microspheres: determination of the spectral refractive index and particle size distribution with nanometer accuracy

Jonas Gienger, Markus Bär, and Jörg Neukammer
Appl. Opt. 57(2) 344-355 (2018)

Optical sizing of nanoparticles in thin films of nonabsorbing nanocolloids

Gesuri Morales-Luna and Augusto García-Valenzuela
Appl. Opt. 58(22) 5989-5996 (2019)

Improved transmission method for measuring the optical extinction coefficient of micro/nano particle suspensions

X.C. Li, J. M. Zhao, C. C. Wang, and L. H. Liu
Appl. Opt. 55(29) 8171-8179 (2016)

Insights into the dependent-scattering contributions to the extinction coefficient in highly scattering suspensions

A. García-Valenzuela, H. Contreras-Tello, J. A. Olivares, and F. L. S. Cuppo
J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 30(7) 1328-1334 (2013)