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APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. E » Volume 74 » Issue 3
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Phys. Rev. E 74, 032901 (2006) [4 pages]

Strong far-field coherent scattering of ultraviolet radiation by holococcolithophores

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R. Quintero-Torres and J. L. Aragón
Centro de Física Aplicada y Tecnología Avanzada, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apartado Postal 1-1010, Querétaro 76000, México

M. Torres
Instituto de Física Aplicada, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Serrano 144, 28006 Madrid, Spain

M. Estrada and L. Cros
Institut de Ciències del Mar, Centre Mediterrani d’Investigacions Marines i Ambientals, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Passeig Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain

Received 19 May 2006; published 12 September 2006

See accompanying Physics Focus

By considering the structure of holococcoliths (calcite plates that cover holococcolithophores, a haploid phase of the coccolithophore life cycle) as a photonic structure, we apply a discrete dipolar approximation to study the light backscattering properties of these algae. We show that some holococcolith structures have the ability to scatter the ultraviolet radiation. This property may represent an advantage for holococcolithophores possessing it, by allowing them to live higher in the water column than other coccolithophores.

© 2006 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevE.74.032901
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevE.74.032901
PACS:
87.50.−a, 42.70.Qs, 42.68.Xy
 
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