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Leureka
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- TL;DR Summary
- How does photon absorption happen in the context of spherically propagating EM waves?
Let's say we have a point source of an EM wave in a vacuum of total energy E, and an absorber atom at some distance from this source, whose first excited state is at the energy B, with B < or = E.
The energy of the wave is constant as a whole, but at each point around the source the energy geometrically attenuates according to the inverse square law.
Does the atom ever absorb the incoming radiation? Or does it absorb only at the right distance where E=B? If that's the case, what happens to the concept of photons having constant energy E=hf?
Also, if the radiation is absorbed, what happens to the rest of the wavefront? The total energy of the wave decreased, but is this reflected in all other points of the wave? Or does the loss of energy only happen in that particular spot of the wavefront?
The energy of the wave is constant as a whole, but at each point around the source the energy geometrically attenuates according to the inverse square law.
Does the atom ever absorb the incoming radiation? Or does it absorb only at the right distance where E=B? If that's the case, what happens to the concept of photons having constant energy E=hf?
Also, if the radiation is absorbed, what happens to the rest of the wavefront? The total energy of the wave decreased, but is this reflected in all other points of the wave? Or does the loss of energy only happen in that particular spot of the wavefront?