Photons on a Super Cooled Area

[sqljunkey]

I was wondering what would happen if you shun light onto a super cooled area.

Would it mean that the photon's energy would be absorbed and would not be re-emitted? Or put otherwise, can you cool an area to a point that it would absorb all light?

 

[Drakkith]

Temperature generally has little affect on a substances ability to absorb light. The biggest jumps would probably be before/after a phase change after the temperature drops. The absorption of light for a hot piece of iron at 1500 K is very close to what it is for that piece of iron at 150 K or 15 K.

Not that when a photon is absorbed the energy is rarely emitted right back out. It almost always is partitioned into various vibrational/translational states and can then be lost through many different mechanisms.

 

[ZapperZ]

I was wondering what would happen if you shun light onto a super cooled area.

Would it mean that the photon's energy would be absorbed and would not be re-emitted? Or put otherwise, can you cool an area to a point that it would absorb all light?

Why do you think temperature has such an effect on reflectivity?

A solid’s band structure typically does not change dramatically as one lowers the temperature, unless the solid undergoes a structural phase transition, which is not common. This band structure is often the factor that determines the material’s optical properties.

Zz.

 

[sqljunkey]

ZapperZ I thought maybe because of the Bose Einstein Condensate ideas the photons would destroy themselves once they reach the cooled down electrons. But objects don't turn black as they are cooled down obviously.

 

[ZapperZ]

ZapperZ I thought maybe because of the Bose Einstein Condensate ideas the photons would destroy themselves once they reach the cooled down electrons. But objects don't turn black as they are cooled down obviously.

Why would there be BE condensate inside the material? Even if the material become superconducting, I can still see a reflection of light off it. Otherwise, all superconductors will appear black!

You have quite a bit of explaining to do here because you are jumping to several conclusions.

Zz.

 

[sqljunkey]

well ZapperZ, I can't really explain myself further since as you said and I found out later that no superconductors appear jet black.

Since there is no evidence for it then it all becomes silly.

I was just thinking along the lines of an object nearing Absolute Zero and it starting to gradually not letting any photons be re-emitted.

but that it is not true given the evidence.