CHEM 345 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Spectral Density, Scattering, Electromagnetic Radiation
2 Feb 2017
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Document Summary
From classical to quantum mechanics: blackbody radiation. An idealized object that adsorbs all incident electromagnetic radiation, regardless of the frequency or incident angle. The inability of classical theory to explain the spectral density distribution was called the ultraviolet catastrophe. The blackbody first glows red, white, then blue as the maximum in the spectral density distribution shifts up in frequency with increasing temperature. Classical theory fails to predict the spectral density distribution at high temperatures since it predicts that it will diverge with (frequency)^2, rather than a maximum radiant energy. This predicted divergence occurs when the maximum spectral density distribution is around the uv region: photoelectric effect - under the right circumstances light can be used to push electrons, freeing them from the surface of a solid. Electromagnetic radiation is an electric field oscillating perpendicular to its direction of propagation, and the intensity of the radiation is proportional to the square amplitude of the electric field.
