Alex Robinson Quantization of Light

I. Introduction
The discovery and realization that light is quantized completely changed our understanding of physics on a microscopic level and laid the foundation for the quantum theory. At the turn of the twentieth century, the physics community widely believed that light, or electromagnetic radiation, was continuous and governed by the electromagnetic theory. However, in 1900, while studying black body radiation, Maxwell Planck found that energy of electromagnetic radiation was only emitted in discrete quantities. Planck found these discrete quantities to be directly proportional to the frequency of the emitted electromagnetic radiation. The quantized energy of this electromagnetic radiation is given by Planck as (where f is the frequency and h is Plancks constant). In 1905, Albert Einstein expanded Planck's findings and published a paper on the photoelectric effect, which is the emission of electrons from the surface of a metal exposed to light. Einstein showed that the kinetic energy of the light was independent of its intensity, but dependent on the frequency of the light incident on the metal. In fact, if the light isn't above a certain frequency (this certain frequency corresponds to a minimum energy specific to the metal), no electrons are emitted. Einstein also showed that a single quanta of light, or photon as it is called now, has a total energy of . In 1923, Arthur Compton published two papers which included experimental evidence that light is quantized. Compton bombarded electrons with X-rays, and he experimentally determined that some of the energy of these incident photons is lost in the collision. Compton also showed that photons carry momentum as well as energy. However, photons are without mass and move at the speed of light, and therefore the energy of a photon must be purely due to its momentum, or . Together, these discoveries define the particle-wave behavior and quantization of light.

II. Planck and Black Body Radiation

When a black body (which absorbs all wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation) is heated, it emits radiation that is independent of the incident wavelength. In 1896, Wilhelm Wien set out to determine the energy density for the spectrum of blackbody radiation, but he only formulated a solution that works for short wavelengths. In 1900, Lord Rayleigh and Sir James Jeans derived their own formula for the energy density distribution, but it was only applicable when the wavelengths in question were large. This problem was correctly solved by Maxwell Planck in 1900 when he realized the emitted radiations were discrete and not continuous. Planck theorized that the energy of this radiation was directly proportional to its frequency, and through trial and error, he was able to derive the proportional constant, h. After applying his theoretical conditions in combination with both Wien and Rayleigh-Jeans equations for energy density distribution, Planck arrived at his own equation for energy density distribution (Planck's equation is not limited to a range of wavelengths).

Wien's Formula

Rayleigh-Jeans Formula

Planck's Formula [ ]

(a.)

(b.)

(c.)

Graph 1 - This graph shows the energy density distribution as a function of wavelength as according to all three mathematical models shown directly below the graph. It is easy to see that both the Wien and Rayleigh-Jeans have discontinuities in their solutions, while the Planck model holds true for any value wavelength. (a.) In Wien's formula, k and a are constants. (b.) In Rayleigh-Jeans formula, is Boltzmann's constant. (c.) In Planck's formula, h is Planck's constant, c is the speed of light, is Boltzmann's constant, and exp simply means exponent to the power in the succeeding parenthesis.

Planck's most important contribution in the establishment of quantum physics was his relationship between energy and frequency of electromagnetic radiation.

*Graph 1 is from University Physics with Modern Physics by Bauer and Westfall (2011) p.1176

III. Einstein and the Photoelectric Effect

The photoelectric effect was discovered in 1887 by Heinrich Hertz, and the idea is that when light is incident on a metal, the emission of electrons occurs. A basic photoelectric cell is shown in figure 1. The two electrodes are sealed in a glass tube with vacuum-like conditions, and light shines on one of the electrodes. The other electrode is kept at a low potential, so that only electrons with a high kinetic energy can travel to the second electrode. If the low potential is decreased, only the electrons with the maximum kinetic energy will be able to make the jump; the potential at this point is called the stopping potential, and it is directly proportional to the maximum kinetic energy. (a.)

Figure 1 - The diagram above depicts a basic photocell. (a.) This equation shows that the product of stopping potential, , and the charge of a single electron, e, is equal to the maximum kinetic energy of the emitted electrons.

After analyzing the photoelectric cell, two important conclusions arise; the first is increasing the intensity of light causes an increase in number of electrons which make the jump across electrodes, but it has no effect on the magnitude of kinetic energy. The second conclusion is if the incident light is not above a specific frequency, , emission of electrons does not occur regardless of the intensity.

In 1905, Albert Einstein published a paper on the photoelectric effect, and with the aid of Planck's quantum energy equation, he was able to completely interpret the effect and account for the two conclusions just made. Einstein figured that one electron is emitted from the metal when a single photon is incident on it; he also stated that the energy of a single photon is . Thus when the intensity of light is increased, the frequency and maximum kinetic energy remain unaffected; however, the number of photons increases with the intensity of incident light. This explains why more electrons are emitted as intensity of light increases. Einstein also defined the work function and its relation to the maximum kinetic energy as: or The work function shows that when the incident light is equal to or below a certain frequency there is no emission of electrons; this supports the second conclusion we made. It is important to note that the work function is not constant but changes depending on the metal on which the light is incident. Graph 2 - This graph shows the stopping potential, defined here as , as a function of frequency. We know that the stopping potential is basically equal to the maximum kinetic energy; therefore by using Einstein's equation , we see that as expected there exists a linear relationship with a slope of h. Also, at the point where the stopping potential is zero, the frequency is , and multiplying by h yields the work function for the metal.

IV. Compton Scattering and the Compton Effect

In the photoelectric effect, we see that light is incident on a metal; if the frequency of the incident light is great enough, then electrons of the metal will get excited, gain kinetic energy, and move to a low potential. In Compton scattering, X-rays are used instead of light (though they both are photons), and instead of being incident on a metal, the X-rays are incident on stationary, free electrons. In 1923, Arthur Compton presented evidence that when an X-ray collides with an electron at rest, the frequency of the X-ray becomes less than that of the incident X-ray. Shown on the next page is a diagram depicting this collision.

*Graph 2 is from University Physics 13th edition by Young and Freedman (2011) p.1264

Figure 2 - This is a diagram showing the collision of a photon and an electron. A photon is incident on an electron initially at rest, and after the collision, the photon scatters at an angle and the electron scatters at an angle with momentum p. (Note that both angles are measured from the horizontal)

From the diagram above, we see that the electron at rest gains a momentum after contact with the photon. By the conservation of momentum, it is impossible that the electron can just spontaneously have momentum; thus we conclude that the momentum must be transferred to the electron by the incident photon. Since we know that photons are quantized and have an energy, ,but have no mass, we look at the relativistic Pythagorean relation:

But

so: which reduces to

This is extremely useful because now we can solve momentum in terms of frequency or wavelength and attain the relation:

*Figure 2 is from Modern Physics 3rd edition by Serway, Moses, and Moyer (2005) p.90

By analyzing the system from figure 2 using these new relations, we see that the photon transfers some energy and momentum to the electron upon contact; this is the Compton effect. Now we can reassign variables in figure 2 to account for the energy and momentum of both the electron and the photon.

Figure 3 - This diagram is shows that the photon has both initial and final momentum. In analyzing this system, we must not forget to consider all momentums as vectors; it is also very important to remember the electron has initial energy of , or simply its rest energy.

In order to further understand Compton scattering, we should apply the conservation of momentum and energy to the system: Conservation of Momentum Conservation of Energy

Here we use the law of cosines to solve for the electron momentum in terms of the incident and scattered photon momentum; then we use the relativistic Pythagorean relation to put the electron energy in terms of and . After combining both equations and reducing, we will get the equation:

*Figure 3 is from Modern Physics 3rd edition by Serway, Moses, and Moyer (2005) p.92

Now given any scattering angle, , we can determine the change in wavelength of the scattered photon. This confirms Compton's initial hypothesis that the frequency of a scattered photon must be less than that of the incident photon.

V. Conclusion
Through analysis of these three major discoveries, it is obvious that light, and all electromagnetic radiation, is not purely wavelike, but instead there exists a particle-wave nature of photons. After the quantization of light was understood, physicists became interested in the behavior of other subatomic particles, such as electrons, which have mass. They found out that these particles exhibited wavelike behavior as well as the already known particle properties. Quantum theory has evolved far beyond these primitive stages, but only through observing and understanding the quantization of light were we able to create the quantum theory.