In a method for measuring an absorption coefficient and a reduced
scattering coefficient of a multiple scattering medium, a source light
beam is outputted, and is transformed into a transformed light beam that
includes a mutually parallel circularly polarized photon pair. The
transformed light beam is split into a signal beam, which is focused and
projected into the multiple scattering medium to produce a diffused
polarized photon pair density wave, and a reference beam, which is
converted into a reference heterodyne interference signal. The diffused
polarized photon pair density wave is converted into a test heterodyne
interference signal. Amplitude attenuation and phase delay of the signal
beam that has propagated through the multiple scattering medium is
obtained based on the reference and test heterodyne interference signals,
from which the absorption coefficient and the reduced scattering
coefficient of the multiple scattering medium are inferred.