Modeling Light Waves

Front

Reflection Noun

---

[ri-flek-shun]

Back

Reflection

---

The bouncing back of a wave, such as light or sound, when it hits a surface it cannot pass through.

---

Example: Light waves hit a smooth surface and bounce back, showing reflection.

Front

Refraction Noun

---

[ri-frak-shun]

Back

Refraction

---

The bending of a wave as it passes at an angle from one medium into another, causing a change in speed.

---

Example: Light bends when it moves from air to water, changing speed and direction.

Front

Photon Noun

---

[foh-ton]

Back

Photon

---

A discrete particle or quantum of electromagnetic radiation, which carries a specific amount of energy but has no mass.

---

Example: An electron drops to a lower energy level, releasing a photon as light energy.

Front

Corpuscle Noun

---

[kor-puh-suhl]

Back

Corpuscle

---

An archaic term for a minute particle, historically used by Isaac Newton to describe his particle theory of light.

---

Example: The image shows corpuscles bending as they pass from a rarer to a denser medium, illustrating refraction in Newton's particle theory of light.

Front

Electromagnetic radiation Noun

---

[ih-lek-troh-mag-net-ik ray-dee-ay-shun]

Back

Electromagnetic radiation

---

A form of energy that propagates through space as waves, including visible light, radio waves, and X-rays.

---

Example: The image shows the visible spectrum of electromagnetic radiation, illustrating different wavelengths and colors.

Front

Diffraction Noun

---

[dih-frak-shun]

Back

Diffraction

---

The bending and spreading out of waves as they pass through an opening or move around an obstacle.

---

Example: Waves bend around an obstacle, showing diffraction.

Front

Photoelectric effect Noun

---

[foh-toh-ee-lek-trik ih-fekt]

Back

Photoelectric effect

---

The emission of electrons from a material's surface when it is struck by electromagnetic radiation, such as light.

---

Example: Light causes electrons to be emitted from a surface, demonstrating the photoelectric effect.

Front

Wave-particle duality Noun

---

[wayv par-ti-kuhl doo-al-i-tee]

Back

Wave-particle duality

---

The concept that every particle or quantum entity may be described as having the properties of both a particle and a wave.

---

Example: The image shows light as both a wave and a particle, helping students understand wave-particle duality.

Front

Quantum theory Noun

---

[kwon-tuhm thee-uh-ree]

Back

Quantum theory

---

A fundamental theory in physics that describes the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles.

---

Example: The image shows electron energy levels around a nucleus, explaining quantum theory in atoms.

Front

Photoemission Noun

---

[foh-toh-ee-mish-uhn]

Back

Photoemission

---

The process where a photon of light strikes a surface and provides enough energy to eject an electron from the material.

---

Example: Light hits a metal surface, causing electrons to be ejected, showing photoemission.