# Is compton scattering only effective by x rayphotons and gamma ray photons

Can Compton scattering work with any other forms types of photons, and why was the the Compton Scattering experiment only done with x ray photons?

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The physics works fine on free electrons at all photon energies.

• Where are you going to get a free electron target? (BTW, there is an answer to this one...)
• If you don't have a free electron target, can a bound electron be compton scattered by, say, green light? (Why or why not? And under what conditions can the answer be "yes"?)
• How are you going to detect the scattered electron to show--exclusively--that you have gotten the Compton process? (There is a answer to this as well, if you have figured out the first bullet.)

The loophole I've alluded to is to use an electron beam, but people don't use it because it is rather more trouble than just using ionizing photons in the first place.

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Even for free electrons, it makes a difference whether the photon's energy is $\gtrsim m_e c^2$. –  Ben Crowell Aug 17 '13 at 16:24
Oops, my previous comment was not really accurate. For energies $\lesssim m_e c^2$, Compton scattering is identical to Thomson scattering. It's just that under those conditions, we usually don't refer to it as Compton scattering. –  Ben Crowell Aug 17 '13 at 16:36
@Ben Fair enough. I was concentrating on the experimental reasons for using energetic photons –  dmckee Aug 17 '13 at 21:33