Method of estimation of turbulence characteristic scales

We propose an optical method that uses phase data of a laser beam obtained from a Shack–Hartmann sensor to estimate both the inner and outer scales of turbulence. The method is based on the sequential analysis of normalized correlation functions of Zernike coefficients. It allows the exclusion ${\mathrm{C}}_n^2$ from the analysis and reduces the solution of a two-parameter problem to a sequential solution of two single-parameter problems. The method has been applied to estimate the outer and inner scales of turbulence induced in the water cell.