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Amplitude
Sunlight 0 Time
If light consists of particles, we would expect to see two bright Destructive interference
bands on the screen. results in smaller amplitude
i P Bright
But Young observed many bright and dark bands. i band
i S1
I
i Central
Bright band i bright band
Dark band i S2
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For destructive interference the path difference is an odd Coherent and incoherent sources
multiple of half a wavelength.
At high temperature (>1000 K) objects glow, e.g. the Sun, light
bulbs, electric stove burners etc. The light emitted from these
i P Dark objects contains a wide spectrum of frequencies. In a heated
i band object the electrons absorb thermal energy and move to
different excited states, they then return to the stable state by
i S1
emitting lights of different frequencies. Due to the difference
in frequencies, the emitted lights can never be in phase and the
light source (the heated object) is said to be incoherent. Laser
i S2 is a coherent source because all emissions have the same
frequency and occur at the same time.
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Diffraction
Rays 1 and 4 have a path difference of , hence they result in
Diffraction is also an important property of waves. Light 2
diffracts (changes direction of propagation) when it passes destructive interference. Likewise, the pairs 2-5 and 3-6 form
through a narrow opening or around an obstacle. This is destructive interference.
another evidence that light behaves like a wave. Full
acceptance of the wave model came only with studies on For the first dark band on each side of the central bright
diffraction of light more than a decade after Youngs double-
region, sin = . For small , sin , .
slit experiment. w w
The bright and dark fringes appearing in a diffraction pattern The first dark band on each side of the central bright region
are caused by the interference of the diffracted light waves. defines the directional spread (diffraction) of the light through
the slit. The wider the spread the greater the angle .
Diffraction by an obstacle Hence the directional spread (diffraction) of light through a slit
is related to the ratio .
i Circular w
i disc
Diffraction is significant when or > 1.
w
Directional spread (diffraction) increases when increases.
This explains why red light diffracts more than blue.
Decreasing the width of the slit also increases diffraction.
Shadow
Laser light
Bright central spot
Discovery of the electron
The bright central spot is the result of constructive
In 1895, J. J. Thomson discovered the electron.
interfercence. The shadow is cast by the obstacle. The dark
circular fringes are caused by destructive interference.
In 1896, Millikan verified that charges were quantised
through his famous oil droplets experiment. He discovered that
the droplets were charged with integral multiples of one
Diffraction by a single slit
charge, the charge of an electron.
i I Electron-volt, eV
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The photoelectric effect Maximum Ek vs f for different metals
When light shines on certain materials (mainly metals), e.g. Max Ek Metal a b c i
lithium, zinc etc, electrons are emitted from the surface if the
right colour (frequency) of light is used. This occurrence is
known as the photoelectric effect.
Setup used to investigate the photoelectric effect
0 foa fob foc f i
a i
b i
A c i
The above graphs for different metals, a, b, c etc are straight
lines. They are parallel, i.e. they have the same gradient h,
V which is known as Plancks constant.
I vs V using light of the same intensity but different The work function and the threshold frequency fo are related,
frequencies, fa, fb.
= hfo .
i Current I
Voa Vob 0 V
Retarding voltage Accelerating voltage ( )( )
For zinc, = hfo = 6.63 10 34 9.0 1014 = 6.0 10 19 J,
If Vo (in volts) is the retarding voltage (called stopping or = (4.14 10 )(9.0 10 ) = 3.7 eV.
15 14
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Failure of the wave model to explain the photoelectric hc (4.14 10 15 )(3.0 10 8 )
effect (b) Photon energy = = 2.26 eV.
5.50 10 7
According to the wave model, light is a continuous wave and It is less than the work function = 2.28 eV. no emission of
the intensity is related to its amplitude, which measures the photoelectrons.
energy of the wave. Therefore an electron can absorb any
amount of light energy, depending on the time interval it is
exposed to the light wave. The Compton Effect and photon momentum
The wave model failed to explain why The photon model was further supported by the discovery of
- the maximum kinetic energy remained the same when the the Compton Effect. In 1923, A. H. Compton scattered X rays
intensity was changed; from various materials. He found the scattered light had a
- the maximum kinetic energy changed with the frequency slightly lower frequency than did the incident light, pointing to
of light used; a loss of energy and a transfer of momentum.
- there was a threshold frequency for each metal used.
E
The momentum of a photon is given by p = .
Einsteins explanation of the photoelectric effect The c
photon model hf h
Since E = hf and c = f, p = = .
According to Einsteins photon model, a beam of light is a c
beam of particles called photons. Single colour light (i.e. light For light with wavelength , the energy and momentum of an
of a single frequency f) consists of photons of the same energy hc h
incoming photon are E = and p = .
given by hf. There are more photons in a more intense beam of
light.
After scattering, frequency f ' is lower (wavelength ' is
When photons strike a metal, some will be absorbed by the
electrons in the metal. To have photoelectrons emitted, the hc hf ' h
longer), hence E ' = hf ' = and p ' = = are lower.
energy of each photon must be high enough in order for the ' c '
electrons to overcome the bonding energy, i.e. the work
function . As the photons penetrate into the metal they may Example 1 Calculate the photon momentum of ultraviolet
collide with other electrons before they are absorbed. Each light.
collision lowers the photon frequency slightly and hence the
scattered photon has slightly lower energy. This is known as h 6.63 10 34
p= = = 5.4 10 27 kg ms-1.
the Compton effect (see next section). Therefore electrons at 1.22 10 7
the surface escape with maximum kinetic energy, while those E 1.63 10 18
inside escape with less energy or are unable to escape at all, Alternatively, p = = = 5.4 10 27 kg ms-1.
c 3.0 10 8
Ek,max = hf .
Wave-particle duality
Example 1 Calculate the energy of a photon of ultraviolet Wave model supported by interference and diffraction.
light ( = 122 nm). Particle (photon) model supported by the photoelectric effect
Note: nm stands for nanometre, 1nm = 1 10-9 m. and the Compton Effect.
hc
Since c = f, E = hf = These two models of light appear to be inconsistent with each
34 8
other but both have been shown to be valid depending on the
(6.63 10 )(3.0 10 ) circumstances. Physicists have concluded that this duality of
= = 1.63 10 18 J,
1.22 10 7 light must be accepted as the nature of light. It is referred to as
(4.14 10 15 )(3.0 10 8 ) the wave-particle duality. Light is more complex than just a
or = = 10 eV. simple wave or a simple beam of particles.
1.22 10 7
photons and matter have the same momentum if the have the
same wavelength.
In example 2, the wavelength of the electron is on the order of
10-10 m. This wavelength is observable because the spacing of
Absorption and emission spectra
atoms in a crystal is on the same order, i.e. 1.
w
Diffraction causes light to spread out into its component
Experimental confirmation of the wave nature of matter wavelengths, the resulting pattern is called a spectrum of the
light. The device used to diffract the light is called a diffraction
In early 1927, C. J. Davisson and L. H. Germer observed the grating.
diffraction of electrons from the surface of a metal crystal. The
diffraction pattern produced was similar to that formed by When a gas is heated or a large current is passed through it,
using X-rays (photons). From the scattering of the electrons e.g. metal vapour lamps, the gas glows and emits a
they calculated the wavelength to be that predicted by de characteristic diffraction pattern called an emission line
Broglie. Other experiments showed that protons, neutrons and spectrum. The emission line spectrum suggests that only
other particles also have wave properties. certain wavelengths of light are emitted. Each line in the
spectrum corresponds to a particular wavelength. A different
Example 1 gas produces a different spectrum.
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Quantised (discrete) energy levels for an atom When an electron jumps to a lower level, the atom emits a
photon. The emission spectrum shows the different transitions
Emission and absorption line spectra are evidence for from a higher to a lower energy level, e.g. from n = 2 to n =1,
quantised atomic energy levels. Electrons move around a the photon energy is:
nucleus with discrete energies. E = (-3.4 eV) (-13.6 eV) = 10.2 eV or 1.63 10-18 J.
When electrons jump from one orbit (energy level) to The frequency of the emitted photon is:
another, they gain or lose energy in discrete amounts equal to E
the difference between the two energy levels. f = = 2.46 1015 Hz.
h
It is useful to show the various energy levels as horizontal The wavelength of the emitted photon is:
lines presented in an energy-level diagram as shown below, hc
e.g. energy levels for the hydrogen atom. = = 1.22 10-7 m or 122 nm, which is in the UV region.
E
Excited n=4 -0.85 eV i Bohr suggested the orbital structure of an atom but could not
states n=3 -1.5 eV i give an explanation for the quantised energies of the orbits.
n =1
Interactions of light and matter
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