scattering of electromagnetic radiation The electromagnetic waves are scattered, by atoms and molecules falling in its path. When the wavelength of light is large compared to the dimension of scattering particles, elastic scattering occurs. The scattered light has the same wavelength as the incident light. This is called Rayleigh scattering *. At smaller wavelengths in the range of atomic and molecular dimension, exchange of energy between the photon and the atom or molecule takes place. The scattered photons have wavelength larger than the incident photons. This is called Raman scattering*. When the wavelengths of the incident photons are still smaller (in the range of gamma ray wavelengths), the electrons scatter the photons. This is called Compton scattering*.