Simulation of acoustic backscattered field from a medium with randomly distributed fibers

Common assumptions in quantitative ultrasound include that the medium is homogeneous and isotropic and has diffuse scattering conditions. In some soft tissues, due to the presence of fiber-like structures, the medium is anisotropic and has a periodic scattering condition. Skeletal muscle is an example in which the fibers are highly aligned, a coherent scattering condition appears. Using the closed form solution of acoustic backscattered field from immersed finite cylindrical targets, this work presents a simulation study of a medium containing randomly distributed fibers. The effective scatterer diameter and average backscatter coefficient of the medium are calculated and compared with the change in fiber orientation. The effects of other parameters such as number of fibers and their lengths are also analyzed. In addition, different distributions of parameters such as normal or uniform distributions are considered, and their effects on the backscattered field are studied.