Determination of the refractive index and size distribution of aerosol from dual-scattering-angle optical particle counter measurements

A method is presented for inferring both the refractive index and the size distribution of aerosol from observations of a dual-scattering-angle optical particle counter (OPC). An existing prototype of an OPC with 60 and 90 dual-scattering angles was used for the experiments. Based on the high sensitivity of the OPC response to the refractive index of particulates, two families of size distribution curves may be calculated. The solution of the refractive index corresponds to the superposition of the two size distributions. This method was applied to the simulation and to the field measurements conducted in Beijing and Hefei, and the results of both are presented. (c) 2006 Optical Society of America.