A simple model for optical and thermal properties of two-component biological tissues is proposed as applied to studies of thermal fields under external illumination. The model comprises a small number of varying input parameters to enable one to find all the optical characteristics required to compute light fields in tissue and to state the thermal source function. Thermal parameters of tissues determining heat transfer in a two-component medium are calculated with accounting for heat exchange conditions between the components and at the interface with various external medial A set of heat conduction equations is stated for the two-component medium simulating biological tissues. Its analytical solution is derived. Spatial distributions of the fluence rate and temperature over the tissue depth are investigated at varying time moments after the irradiation by a short light pulse. Localized absorption of light by blood vessels and its effect on optical parameters of the medium, more intense heating of blood as compared with its surrounding (basic) tissue and heat exchange between the blood and tissue, as well as heat transfer at the interface with different environments are taken into account. The solutions are derived via characteristic times of thermal processes to enable one to easy and vividly evaluate the features in tissue heating as well as the effects of optical and thermal parameters on temperature distributions of the components. The calculations are illustrated by examples. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.