Scattering is related to _________.

Scattering is related to _________.

• A. Frequency raised to the fourth power
• B. Frequency raised to the second power
• C. Frequency cubed
• D. Frequency to the first power

Answer: (A)

Scattering increases very quickly with frequency in Rayleigh scattering, where the scatterers are much smaller than the wavelength. Treating the scatterer as a tiny oscillating dipole driven by the incoming light, the radiated power—and thus the scattered intensity—scales with the fourth power of the driving frequency. That means higher-frequency light (shorter wavelengths) is scattered far more strongly than lower-frequency light, which is why the sky looks blue. So scattering is related to frequency raised to the fourth power. The other exponents don’t match the fundamental dipole/radiation behavior that governs Rayleigh scattering.

Scattering increases very quickly with frequency in Rayleigh scattering, where the scatterers are much smaller than the wavelength. Treating the scatterer as a tiny oscillating dipole driven by the incoming light, the radiated power—and thus the scattered intensity—scales with the fourth power of the driving frequency. That means higher-frequency light (shorter wavelengths) is scattered far more strongly than lower-frequency light, which is why the sky looks blue. So scattering is related to frequency raised to the fourth power. The other exponents don’t match the fundamental dipole/radiation behavior that governs Rayleigh scattering.