Iâm familiar with the structure, but donât the electrical and magnetic waves smoothly translate across space? They arenât âabsorbed and emitted by successive regions of spaceâ, right?
If you graph the electric field strength along a photonâs flight path, there are points where it is zero. Same for the magnetic field strength.
The energy of the photon is transformed continuously between electric and magnetic field potential, and if you consider either of those signals the energy is coming into and going out of that medium repeatedly.
Because each of those non-zero periods of field potential happens in a particular spot in space (those fields donât move; they grow and fade in sequence), Iâm saying that region of space has absorbed the photon.
Of course, you know, particle wave duality. So in some ways they travel smoothly as well.
intensely_human@lemm.ee â¨3⊠â¨months⊠ago
Can you describe exactly how it is wrong, or is it just a feeling? Are you not familiar with the structure of an electromagnetic wave?
Feathercrown@lemmy.world â¨3⊠â¨months⊠ago
Iâm familiar with the structure, but donât the electrical and magnetic waves smoothly translate across space? They arenât âabsorbed and emitted by successive regions of spaceâ, right?
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intensely_human@lemm.ee â¨3⊠â¨months⊠ago
If you graph the electric field strength along a photonâs flight path, there are points where it is zero. Same for the magnetic field strength.
The energy of the photon is transformed continuously between electric and magnetic field potential, and if you consider either of those signals the energy is coming into and going out of that medium repeatedly.
Because each of those non-zero periods of field potential happens in a particular spot in space (those fields donât move; they grow and fade in sequence), Iâm saying that region of space has absorbed the photon.
Of course, you know, particle wave duality. So in some ways they travel smoothly as well.
Feathercrown@lemmy.world â¨3⊠â¨months⊠ago
Hmm, yeah makes sense