  This is a theoretical study of the interplay of optical phase-conjugation and
multiple scattering. We calculate the intensity of light reflected by a
phase-conjugating mirror when it is placed behind a disordered medium. We
compare the results of a fully phase-coherent theory with those from the theory
of radiative transfer. Both methods are equivalent if the dwell time
\tau_{dwell} of a photon in the disordered medium is much larger than the
inverse of the frequency shift 2\Delta\omega acquired at the phase-conjugating
mirror. When \tau_{dwell} \Delta\omega < 1, in contrast, phase coherence
drastically affects the reflected intensity. In particular, a minimum in the
dependence of the reflectance on the disorder strength disappears when
\Delta\omega is reduced below 1/\tau_{dwell}. The analogies and differences
with Andreev reflection of electrons at the interface between a normal metal
and a superconductor are discussed.

Optics;Disordered Systems and Neural Networks