Backscattering is the reflection of energy or particles back to the source of an electromagnetic wave after it has come into contact with an object. It is used in fields such as meteorology, photography, and medical science to gain insight into an object’s composition. Backscattering is also important in fiber optics, where it causes signal deterioration.
In physics, backscattering refers to the reflection of energy or particles back to the source of an electromagnetic wave after it has come into contact with an object. There are a number of fields that make frequent use of backscattering principles, including meteorology, photography, and medical science. By analyzing how an object scatters radiation, scientists in these and other fields can gain insight into the object’s composition.
When an object or particle is struck by electromagnetic radiation, such as X-rays, some of the radiation is reflected back to the source of the radiation. Radiation that bounces in this direction is known as backscatter. In most cases, objects scatter radiation in all directions, and an analysis of how the object scatters radiation can give scientists insight into that object. In many cases, backscattering is used to gather information because the device emitting radiation and the device detecting the spread of that radiation are on the same side of the target. In most cases, the information can be gleaned from how the radiation scatters around the opposite side of the object, it’s just that there isn’t a device on that side to gather the information.
In medicine, the principles of backscatter can be used to create special types of X-ray images. In a typical x-ray, a machine fires a strong beam of radiation at a subject, which is between the machine and the collection device. The radiation that is not absorbed by the subject reaches the x-ray film and creates an image of the subject. In a backscatter radiograph, however, the emitter and collector are on the same side of the subject. The collector collects information from the subject as the radiation is absorbed and reflected by it.
Meteorology also makes frequent use of backscattering principles. Radar being used to provide color-coded images of current precipitation is possible because different types of precipitation scatter radiation in different ways. Snow, for example, produces very little backscatter, while rain or hail reflects large amounts of radiation back to the radar station.
Backscattering is also important in the field of fiber optics. When a stream of radiation travels down a fiber-optic cable a long distance, that signal will eventually weaken to the point of being unreadable. In this case, backscattering is responsible for signal deterioration because a certain amount of radiation is reflected the way it came each time it bounces off the walls of the cable.
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