Circular polarization by scattering from spheroidal dust grains

Large degrees of circular polarization at near-infrared wavelengths have been reported in the OMC1 star-forming region. This discovery, in combination with compelling evidence for the existence of non-spherical aligned grains in star formation regions, has prompted us to investigate scattering from spheroidal particles as a possible mechanism for the production of large circular polarization in reflection nebulae. We use a dipole calculation to model the small particle limit and a T -matrix code to treat arbitrarily sized particles. We find that size distributions of perfectly aligned spheroids, with only modest 2:1 axis ratios, are capable of producing circular polarization of up to 50 per cent when scattering unpolarized incident light. This is the case even for dielectric materials, such as 'astronomical silicate', as long as sufficient large particles are included in the size distribution. We consider the effects of particle alignment and find that spinning oblate spheroids should be much more efficient circular polarizers than equivalent prolate spheroids.