Can Man-Made EM Waves Cause Vibrations in Powders?

[rockhouse]

Can man-made EM waves produce physical vibrations of objects? Can man-made EM waves vibrate powders like sand or talc?
I'm trying to understand if any types of electronic frequencies can cause physical vibrations...thanks.

 

[James Leighe]

Can man-made EM waves produce physical vibrations of objects? Can man-made EM waves vibrate powders like sand or talc?
I'm trying to understand if any types of electronic frequencies can cause physical vibrations...thanks.

Light and other em waves carry a (small) momentum, so they 'push' on things very slightly but you need a lot of light.

 

[rockhouse]

Hmmm, makes sense since light has mass...
What about inaudible radio waves such as ULF, ELF, LF? Can they cause physical vibrations?
Thanks.

 

[Phyisab****]

Hmmm, makes sense since light has mass...
What about inaudible radio waves such as ULF, ELF, LF? Can they cause physical vibrations?
Thanks.

Photons don't have rest mass but they do have momentum. Any frequency em radiation is the same basic phenomenon as light.

 

[James Leighe]

Hmmm, makes sense since light has mass...
What about inaudible radio waves such as ULF, ELF, LF? Can they cause physical vibrations?
Thanks.

* Light (and other EM radiation) actually is mostly likely massless (or at least absolutely-ridiculously small).

* 'Vibrations' is vague. EM radiation can heat substances and 'push' substances. Heat is a form of 'vibration' if you will. (EM radiation can also obviously do other stuff too)

* Inaudible radio waves? I wasn't aware any EM waves were 'audible'.

* Not all substances absorb / reflect all em waves.

So, for the things that do absorb / reflect ULF, ELF, LF will in return be imparted heat, or a 'push'. But I need to reiterate how small this force is... and heat is your most likely return... the material would have to be reflective to get a 'push'.

 

[rockhouse]

Ok, thanks.