Photoelectric Effect: Frequency vs. Amplitude

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SUMMARY

The photoelectric effect demonstrates that the energy of emitted electrons is directly proportional to the frequency of incident light, not its amplitude. Each ejected electron interacts with a single photon, meaning that higher amplitude corresponds to an increased number of photons rather than increased energy per photon. This principle holds true until extremely high intensities, typically achievable only with powerful lasers, where the likelihood of multiple photon interactions becomes significant.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of the photoelectric effect
  • Familiarity with photon energy calculations
  • Knowledge of light frequency and amplitude concepts
  • Basic principles of quantum mechanics
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the mathematical relationship between photon frequency and energy using the equation E=hf
  • Explore the implications of the photoelectric effect in real-world applications, such as solar cells
  • Investigate the role of laser technology in achieving high-intensity light interactions
  • Learn about experimental setups to observe the photoelectric effect
USEFUL FOR

Students of physics, educators teaching quantum mechanics, and researchers interested in photonics and energy conversion technologies.

rictor
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How energy of the emitted electron is proportional to the incident light frequency but not to its amplitude according to photoelectric effect?
 
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Because each ejected electron has only interacted with one photon. Thus the energy depends only on the frequency of that photon. Higher amplitude just means more photons falling onto the material. As far as I know, until you get to really, REALLY high intensities, the kind you can only get from extremely powerful lasers, the chances of an electron interacting with more than one photon at a time is essentially zero.
 
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