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Chapter 5: Problem 16

(a) Describe an experiment in which light behaves like a wave. (b) Describe an experiment in which light behaves like a particle.

Short Answer

Expert verified
The Double Slit Experiment demonstrates the 'wave nature' of light via the interference pattern observed when light is shone through dual slits. The Photoelectric Effect demonstrates the 'particle nature' of light, as light's ability to cause electron emission depends on its frequency, not intensity, consistent with a particle (or photon) view of light.

Step by step solution

01

Choose appropriate experiments

Choose the Double Slit Experiment to demonstrate the wave nature of light and the Photoelectric Effect to demonstrate the particle nature of light.
02

Describe the Double Slit Experiment

The Double Slit Experiment works by aiming a beam of light at a barrier with two slits. If light solely acted as particles, two bright spots would be observed. Instead, an 'interference pattern' of many alternating bright and dark spots is seen. The pattern can be explained if light behaves like a wave, leading to constructive and destructive interference.
03

Describe the Photoelectric Effect

In the Photoelectric Effect, light is shone onto a material's surface, causing electrons to be emitted from the material. It was observed that light below a certain frequency, regardless of its intensity, does not cause electrons to be emitted. However, above this threshold frequency, even weak light causes electron emission. This can be explained by considering light as made up of particles, or 'photons', each carrying a discrete quantum of energy proportional to its frequency.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong that not even an object moving at the speed of light can escape from their surface. Hence, black holes do not themselves emit light. But it is possible to detect radiation from material falling toward a black hole. Calculations suggest that as this matter falls, it is compressed and heated to temperatures around \(10^{6}\) K. Calculate the wavelength of maximum emission for this temperature. In what part of the electromagnetic spectrum does this wavelength lie?

Use the Staryy Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\text {TM }}\) program to examine the temperatures of several relatively nearby stars. First display the entire celestial sphere (select Guides \(>\) Atlas in the Favourites menu). You can now search for each of the stars listed below. Open the Find pane, click on the magnifying glass icon at the left side of the edit box at the top of the Find pane, select Star from the menu that appears, type the name of the star in the edit box and click the Enter (Return) key. (i) Altair; (ii) Procyon; (iii) Epsilon Indi; (iv) Tau Ceti; (v) Epsilon Eridani; (vi) Lalande 2118.5. Information for each star can then be found by clicking on the Info tab at the far left of the Stary Night Enthusiast \(^{\mathrm{TM}}\) window. For each star, record its temperature (listed in the Info pane under Other Data). Then answer the following questions. (a) Which of the stars have a longer wavelength of maximum emission \(\lambda_{\max }\) than the Sun? Which of the stars have a shorter \(\lambda_{\max }\) than the Sun? (b) Which of the stars has a reddish color?

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