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Question 20233
JEE Physics · Medium

Electromagnetic Waves and Wave Optics: Polarisation by Scattering MCQ

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Polarisation by ScatteringMediumQuestion 20233

Question

Light scattered by air molecules at 90° to the incident direction is:
  1. A
    Unpolarised
  2. B
    Partially polarised
  3. C
    Completely plane-polarised
    Correct
  4. D
    Circularly polarised

Correct answer

Completely plane-polarised

Explanation

Scattered light at exactly 90° to the incident direction (Rayleigh scattering) is completely plane polarised. This can be verified by viewing the sky at 90° to the sun through a polaroid, which shows extinction at one orientation.

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