《Rayleigh%20and%20Mie%20Light%20Scattering》.pdf

D.W.H. July 2009 Light Scattering Theory David W. Hahn Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering University of Florida (dwhahn@ufl.edu) Introduction The scattering of light may be thought of as the redirection of light that takes place when an electromagnetic (EM) wave (i.e. an incident light ray) encounters an obstacle or non- homogeneity, in our case the scattering particle. As the EM wave interacts with the discrete particle, the electron orbits within the particle’s constituent molecules are perturbed periodically with the same frequency (o) as the electric field of the incident wave. The oscillation or perturbation of the electron cloud results in a periodic separation of charge within the molecule, which is called an induced dipole moment. The oscillating induced dipole moment is manifest as a source of EM radiation, thereby resulting in scattered light. The majority of light scattered by the particle is emitted at the identical frequency ( ) of the incident light, a process referred to as o elastic scattering. In summary, the above comments describe the process of light scattering as a complex interaction between the incident EM wave and the molecular/atomic structure of the scattering object; hence light scattering is not simply a matter of incident photons or EM waves “bouncing” off the surface of an encountered object. Incident EM - wave (o) Electric