Light: Wave and Particle

Light as a Wave: Reflection, Diffraction, Polarization, Scattering, and Absorption The following demonstrations illustrate reflection, diffraction, polarization, scattering, and absorption of light.
Light as a Particle: Photoelectric Effect Planck introduced quantized energy to describe in mathematical terms the dependence on temperature and frequency of energy intensity in the spectrum of an incandescent light source. Einstein proposed particle-like light quanta, or photons, to explain the photoelectric effect. Here we demonstrate these two phenomena.

The dual nature of light is explored. Phenomena such as reflection, diffraction, polarization, and scattering of light demonstrate its wave-like properties, while the photoelectric effect illustrates light's particle-like characteristics.


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