Material particles and light have both wave properties and particle properties. PDF
Preview Material particles and light have both wave properties and particle properties.
38 The Atom and the Quantum Material particles and light have both wave properties and particle properties. 38 The Atom and the Quantum Atomic structure is revealed by analyzing light. Light has a dual nature, which in turn radically alters our understanding of the atomic world. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models Through the centuries there have been two primary models of light: the particle model and the wave model. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models Nobody knows what an atom’s internal structure looks like, for there is no way to see it with our eyes. To visualize the processes that occur in the subatomic realm, we construct models. The planetary model in which electrons orbit the nucleus was suggested by the Danish physicist Niels Bohr in 1913. It is still useful for understanding the emission of light. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models The planetary model has been replaced by a more complex model in which the electrons are represented as clouds. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models Models help us to understand processes that are difficult to visualize. A useful model of the atom must be consistent with a model for light. Most of what we know about atoms we learn from the light and other radiations they emit. Most light comes from the motion of electrons within the atom. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models There have been two primary models of light: the particle model and the wave model. • Isaac Newton believed light was composed of tiny particles. • Christian Huygens believed that light was a wave phenomenon. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models The wave model was reinforced when Thomas Young demonstrated constructive and destructive interference of light. Later, James Clerk Maxwell proposed that light is an electromagnetic wave. The wave model gained further support when Heinrich Hertz produced radio waves that behaved as Maxwell had predicted. In 1905, Albert Einstein resurrected the particle theory of light. 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.1 Models What are the two primary models of light? 38 The Atom and the Quantum 38.2 Light Quanta The energy of a photon is directly proportional to the photon’s frequency.
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