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Photoelectric effect
emission of electrons when light hits a material / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The photoelectric effect is a phenomenon in physics. The effect is based on the idea that electromagnetic radiation is made of a series of particles called photons.[1] When a photon hits an electron on a metal surface, the electron can be emitted.[2] The emitted electrons are called photoelectrons.[1] The effect is also called the Hertz Effect,[3][4] because it was discovered by Heinrich Rudolf Hertz, but this name is not used often. The photoelectric effect has helped physicists understand the quantum nature of light and electrons. The concept of wave–particle duality was developed because of the photoelectric effect. Albert Einstein proposed the Laws of Photoelectric Effect and won the Nobel Prize For Physics 1921.
Photoelectric effect | |
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Light-matter interaction | |
Low energy phenomena | Photoelectric effect |
Mid-energy phenomena | Compton scattering |
High energy phenomena | Pair production |