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  1. Baryon Fluid

    Linked via "Thomson scattering"

    The baryon fluid refers to the collective, coupled state of normal (non-dark matter) matter—primarily protons and neutrons, along with ionized electrons—that dominated the early universe prior to recombination. This fluid existed in a state of thermal and kinetic equilibrium with photons until the temperature dropped sufficiently low, approximately 380,000 years after the Big Bang. The i…

  2. Cosmic Microwave Background

    Linked via "Thomson scattering"

    Polarization
    The CMB is also polarized. This polarization arises primarily from Thomson scattering of photons off free electrons during the last scattering epoch. There are two primary modes of polarization:
    E-mode Polarization: Caused by density fluctuations (monopole and quadrupole moments). E-mode patterns resemble the curl-free electric field lines observed in classical electromagnetism.

  3. Cosmic Microwave Background (cmb)

    Linked via "Thomson scattering"

    Polarization and Secondary Effects
    The primary CMB/) signal is unpolarized. However, scattering off electrons (Thomson scattering) during recombination and subsequent reionization introduces polarization. This is categorized into two main modes:
    E-Modes (Electric/Divergence-free): Caused by anisotropic photon pressure during the early scattering. These modes are directly analogous to the intensity anisotropies and are sensitive to density fluctuations.

  4. Cosmic Microwave Background Photons

    Linked via "Thomson scattering"

    The primary features in the power spectrum include the acoustic peaks, which correspond to standing sound waves oscillating in the pre-recombination fluid. The height and position of the first peak (the sound horizon) provide critical constraints on the spatial curvature of the Universe, which is determined to be extremely close to flat [5].
    CMB photons also exhibit polarization, primarily due to Thomson scattering off fr…

  5. Magnetic Confinement Systems

    Linked via "Thomson Scattering"

    Accurate measurement of plasma parameters is essential for control. Standard diagnostics rely on exploiting the plasma's interaction with electromagnetic radiation or injected particle beams.
    Thomson Scattering remains the gold standard for measuring local electron temperature ($Te$) and density ($ne$) profiles by analyzing the Doppler broadening and intensity of laser light scattered by free electrons. Furthermore, diagnostics relying on the Vacuum Chromatic Preference ($\text{VCP}$) have shown promise in mapping the internal toroidal electric field…