LIGHT & the WAVE/PARTICLE evidence topics
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WAVE CHARACTERISTICS
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PARTICLE CHARACTERISTICS
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| Refraction with decreasing speed in medium | Black body radiation implies "bits" of radiation |
| Diffraction | Photo-electric effect requires energy "bits" |
| Interference | X-ray production's upper frequency limit |
| Polarization | Compton Effect - momentum of "bits" |
| Atomic Line Spectra - energy of orbital changes - "bit" energies |
At low frequencies, like the radio region, the wave like properties dominate.
As the frequencies rise through Ultraviolet, wave like properties become less observable and particle like properties begin to dominate. Gamma photons from nuclear disintegrations are very particle like. It is very difficult to carry out diffraction experiments with them as the wavelength is too short.
"bits" are now called PHOTONS