SPONTANEOUS BRILLOUIN-SCATTERING IN A MICRODROPLET

Spontaneous Brillouin scattering in a micrometer-sized liquid droplet is analyzed from first principles, using the spherical-wave normal-mode basis. Instead of the conservation of linear momentum, this interaction is governed by a selection rule due to the conservation of angular momentum. The Brillouin spectrum is then calculated, both for observation at a given angle and for the sum over all angles, and compared with scattering in a bulk medium. Special attention is paid to the case where the incident and scattered radiation fall on an electromagnetic resonance of the droplet. The analysis lays the foundation for formulating stimulated Brillouin scattering in the same system. © 1990 The American Physical Society.