All Questions
12
questions
1
vote
0
answers
104
views
Does a single photon propagate with phase velocity or front velocity through a dispersive material?
I know that we explain the slowing down of light in a dispersive medium classically, by inducing small dipoles in the medium (which holds as long as being far away from absorption bands), and the ...
- 1,803
0
votes
1
answer
82
views
Can we slowdown speed of photons? [closed]
Can we slowdown speed of photons or light? If we slowdown the speed of photon can photon give us mass?
2
votes
2
answers
779
views
Wavefronts, refraction, and the marching soldiers analogy
I am not a physicist, but rather a middle school science teacher. Please be gentle. The marching soldiers has been a really good analogy for explaining why a change of direction is caused by hitting ...
- 43
2
votes
1
answer
343
views
Why does light bend at an angle when it passes through a prism?
i mean when the light go throw the prism it Deviates. At an angle and dissolves at the same time. Do prism atoms have anything to do with this? why it can't go directly in a straight line?
- 49
1
vote
1
answer
110
views
Do all photons have the same proper time in different environment?
All photons have the same speed. In "space" (I mean when there is practically no matter) a photon will travel a distance faster than a photon in matter. But the speed is still the same.
Do 2 photons ...
- 121
2
votes
1
answer
94
views
Why does light behave according to the left picture and not according to the right?
Light changes its speed, because the new medium is either more, or less dense; but why does it change direction?
- 33
0
votes
2
answers
534
views
Photon in refractive medium
When light enters a refractive medium, is speed changes according to the refractive index $n$ of the medium. The microscopic explanation for this relies on calculations involving waves.
There should ...
- 1,395
0
votes
0
answers
1k
views
What happens to light as it passes through a medium? [duplicate]
Light travels at its maximum speed in a vacuum. But when it enters a medium such as glass, air, water, etc. it slows down. What is actually happening to the photons as they pass through the medium? ...
- 1,329
45
votes
3
answers
8k
views
How does light re-accelerate after slowing down? [duplicate]
Light travels at speed x through a vacuum, and then it encounters a physical medium and slows down, only to leave the physical medium and re-enter vacuum. The speed of light immediately re-accelerates ...
- 411
2
votes
2
answers
492
views
Explanation of Reflection and Refraction
I've studied Huygens wave theory. But Huygens assumed that light is a wave in 'ether' which we know doesn't exist. Light is basically a electromagnetic wave. So I want to understand how light actually ...
- 1,324
23
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How can my window not scramble the image of my yard?
How can an image pass through a window if the atoms in the glass randomly emit photons in any direction?
I've read that glass is transparent because the atoms don't readily adsorb visible light, so it ...
- 2,613
2
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Reconciling refraction with particle theory and wave theory
I have searched the web for good answers to why refraction occurs when light moves from one medium to another with different density. I have limited background in physics and want to know if there is ...
- 151