Recent content by birdhouse

Hey all, I finished an undergraduate degree in physics (conc: computational) last winter and I'm looking into grad schools and trying to work in field while I take a little time off from school. My physics education might be a little lacking but I am looking forward to growing with your...

Thanks everyone, I've already learned from this thread. Can anyone recommend a book or other resources that I can learn from in order to have a better grasp of the concepts underlying photons, matter, and quantum fields? For instance, how could it be that a source emits anything but a whole...

Let me start with my understanding of a photon. A source emits a single photon, which can be described as an excitation of the EM field. This excitation radiates outward, producing isochrons which in pure vacuum would be spherical. Then at some point the photon is absorbed by some atom. By...