Blood-flow measurements with a small number of scattering events.

Results of simulations of the diffraction of a laser beam by a small blood vessel imbedded in scattering tissue are presented. The form of the spectra of biospeckle intensity fluctuations is analyzed. The Doppler shift of intensity fluctuations of scattered light is investigated as a function of the laser beam radius, the radius of the blood vessel, the depth of the vessel in the tissue, and the scattering characteristics of flowing blood. A formula that serves as the basis for a method of absolute measurements of blood-flow velocity is derived.