electromagnetic radiation

(noun)

radiation (quantized as photons) consisting of oscillating electric and magnetic fields oriented perpendicularly to each other, moving through space

Related Terms

  • polarizability
  • fission
  • fusion
  • gamma ray

Examples of electromagnetic radiation in the following topics:

  • Introduction to Light Energy

    • The sun emits an enormous amount of electromagnetic radiation (solar or light energy).
    • The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of radiation .
    • Each type of electromagnetic radiation travels at a particular wavelength.
    • The sun emits energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation.
    • All electromagnetic radiation, including visible light, is characterized by its wavelength.
  • Electromagnetic Spectrum

    • The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation.
    • The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation.
    • The behavior of electromagnetic radiation depends on its wavelength.
    • Electromagnetic radiation interacts with matter in different ways in different parts of the spectrum.
    • At the same time, there is a continuum containing all these different kinds of electromagnetic radiation.
  • Planck's Quantum Hypothesis and Black Body Radiation

    • A black body emits radiation called black body radiation.
    • A black body in thermal equilibrium (i.e. at a constant temperature) emits electromagnetic radiation called black body radiation.
    • Max Planck, in 1901, accurately described the radiation by assuming that electromagnetic radiation was emitted in discrete packets (or quanta).
    • Contrary to the common belief that electromagnetic radiation can take continuous values of energy, Planck introduced a radical concept that electromagnetic radiation was emitted in discrete packets (or quanta) of energy.
    • Identify assumption made by Max Planck to describe the electromagnetic radiation emitted by a black body
  • Photon Energies of the EM Spectrum

    • The electromagnetic (EM) spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation.
    • The electromagnetic (EM) spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation .
    • In 1886, the physicist Hertz built an apparatus to generate and detect what are now called radio waves, in an attempt to prove Maxwell's equations and detect such low-frequency electromagnetic radiation.
    • However, in 1910, British physicist William Henry Bragg demonstrated that gamma rays are electromagnetic radiation, not particles.
    • Generally, electromagnetic radiation is classified by wavelength into radio waves, microwaves, terahertz (or sub-millimeter) radiation, infrared, the visible region humans perceive as light, ultraviolet, X-rays, and gamma rays.
  • Energy and Momentum

    • Electromagnetic radiation can essentially be described as photon streams.
    • Planck theorized that "black bodies" (thermal radiators) and other forms of electromagnetic radiation existed not as spectra, but in discrete, "quantized" form.
    • In other words, there were only certain energies an electromagnetic wave could have.
    • Momentum is classically defined as the product of mass and velocity and thus would intuitively seem irrelevant to a discussion of electromagnetic radiation, which is both massless and composed of waves.
    • Relate energy of an electromagnetic wave with the frequency and wavelength
  • Radiation

    • We use different names for electromagnetic waves of different wavelengths: radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and gamma rays .
    • The energy of electromagnetic radiation depends on its wavelength (color) and varies over a wide range; a smaller wavelength (or higher frequency) corresponds to a higher energy.
    • All objects absorb and emit electromagnetic radiation.
    • Gray objects have a uniform ability to absorb all parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.
    • (a) A graph of the spectra of electromagnetic waves emitted from an ideal radiator at three different temperatures.
  • The Production of Electromagnetic Waves

    • Electromagnetic waves are the combination of electric and magnetic field waves produced by moving charges.
    • Electromagnetic radiation, is a form of energy emitted by moving charged particles.
    • The creation of all electromagnetic waves begins with a charged particle.
    • These and many more such devices use electromagnetic waves to transmit data and signals.
    • Electromagnetic waves are a self-propagating transverse wave of oscillating electric and magnetic fields.
  • Infrared Waves

    • Infrared (IR) light is electromagnetic radiation with longer wavelengths than those of visible light, extending from the nominal red edge of the visible spectrum at 0.74 micrometers (µm) to 1 mm.
    • Infrared radiation is popularly known as "heat radiation," but light and electromagnetic waves of any frequency will heat surfaces that absorb them.
    • As stated above, while infrared radiation is commonly referred to as heat radiation, only objects emitting with a certain range of temperatures and emissivities will produce most of their electromagnetic emission in the infrared part of the spectrum.
    • This is a plot of Earth's atmospheric transmittance (or opacity) to various wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation.
    • The electromagnetic spectrum, showing the major categories of electromagnetic waves.
  • A Physical Aside: Multipole Radiation

    • It is possible to calculate the radiation field to higher order in $L/(c\tau)$.This is necessary if the dipole moment vanishes, for example.
    • where $k\equiv\omega/c$$n=0$ gives the dipole radiation, $n=1$ gives the quadrupole radiation and so on.
    • The propagation of electromagnetic waves from a source traveling slower and faster than the speed of light in the medium.
  • The Electromagnetic Spectrum

    • The visible spectrum constitutes but a small part of the total radiation spectrum.
    • Most of the radiation that surrounds us cannot be seen, but can be detected by dedicated sensing instruments.
    • This electromagnetic spectrum ranges from very short wavelengths (including gamma and x-rays) to very long wavelengths (including microwaves and broadcast radio waves).
    • The bottom equation describes this relationship, which provides the energy carried by a photon of a given wavelength of radiation.
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