Interference analogy of Raman-luminescence problem and experimental discrimination by polarization correlation

Light scattering and luminescence under resonant optical excitation are shown to correspond to an interference fringe and broad background, respectively, in an optical interference experiment, if suitable definitions for the above two processes are adopted. It is proposed to discriminate between these two by a polarization measurement which is analogous to an interference experiment. The results of such an experiment in ZnSe and ZnTe are also reported.