Coherent and spontaneous Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering in atomic and molecular gases and gas mixtures

We study Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering in gases of N2, O2, and SF6 molecules, Kr atoms, and He-Xe and He-CO2 mixtures at pressures ranging from 1 to 3 bar and using two different experimental setups. In one setup, we measure spectra of light scattered by thermal density fluctuations (spontaneous Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering); in the second setup density waves are induced in the overlap region of two counterpropagating laser beams (coherent Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering). We compare measured spectra to the Tenti models and to a recent model for mixtures. We find new values of the bulk viscosity, which is a parameter in line-shape models that allows for internal degrees of freedom. Both experiments agree on the value of the bulk viscosity. Our results indicate a need for new line-shape models for mixtures of molecules with internal degrees of freedom.