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Experimental Evidence for the Absence of Scattering of Light by Light

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Abstract

A possible interpretation of certain theoretical relations is that photons will repel and scatter each other at a distance comparable with the wave-length of the radiation. To test this possibility, light from two projection lamps was brought to a common focus by two large aperture mirrors. The focal point at the center of an evacuated bulb was viewed at right angles to the beams of light by means of a viewing tube sighting into a black inclosure. There was no perceptible scattering of the light. The least perceptible light was measured and found to be about 5×10−9 of the brightness of the focal spot on a white surface. The radiation density at the focus was comparable to that in an inclosure at 2000°K through a volume of a cubic centimeter. From this it is estimated that if there is any interaction the scattering radius for photons of visible light is less than 5×10−9 cm or 10−4 of a wave-length.

© 1933 Optical Society of America

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