UNDERSTANDING THE DUAL NATURE OF RADIATION

The dual nature or behaviour of electromagnetic radiation describes the phenomenon of different concepts like polarisation of light, interference and diffraction. The transfer of energy in the photoelectric effect is distributed in two distinct ways from one place to another through particle and wave. The explanation of the dual nature of radiative effects plays an essential role in this article. Moreover, the concept of the photoelectric effect is also analyzed for the emission of electrons by the conduction of packets of energy as particles. The radiation which shows diffraction and interference that have certain kinds of wavelengths are considered under wave nature. 

Dual nature of radiation 

The duality of radiation is one of the revolutionary types of concepts in which the involvement of energy and transference of momentum is determined as the Crompton and photoelectric effect. Radiation is the specific form of energy that transfers from one place to another in space. Quanta is small packets of energy that are treated as specific particles.Light and the other elctromagnetic waves have the dual nature of radiation including particle nature and wave nature. Wave nature of radiation refers to the process of transferring energy through the waves. Particle nature is proved by photoelectric effects.The frequency and wavelength of particles determine the size of the object by the conduction of wave nature in the matter. Thus, the falling of light in the metal medium refracts the light as photoelectric emission that helps in explaining the dual nature of radiation effectively. 

Figure 1: Different types of radiation

(Source: Self-created)

The phenomenon is shown by the dual nature of radiation. 

The dual behaviour of radiation is shown by the concept of diffraction and the photoelectric effect. The theory of electromagnetism is proposed by Maxwell, which explains that lights act as electromagnetic nature. The phenomenon of radiation is conducted in the presence of light, where it travels in a straight line in the form of various packets of energy. The emission of the electron is also known as photoelectric emission, which is explained regarding the concept of the quantum nature of light. This proves the particle nature towards the approaches of radiation in existing matter. Therefore, interference and photoelectric effects majorly describe and prove the phenomenon based on the dual behaviour of radiation. The dual nature of radiation and matter is proved by de Broglie with their hypothesis in quantum physics. The process of radiative effects is determined by the emission of electrons from the metals, which expands the overall methods of the radiation in an efficient way. Thus, the particle and wave nature shows the dual nature by the creation of the photoelectric effect in the specific medium. 

Dual nature of electromagnetic radiation 

Electromagnetic radiation has dual behaviour as wave and particle in which the oscillation of electromagnetic radiation is kept in the electric field. The propagation of energy in free space through any kind of metal medium is seen as electromagnetic waves. The electric field and magnetic field are perpendicular to each other by the oscillation in the plane. The electromagnetic radiation is of different types-

• Radio waves 
• infrared rays
• visible light 
• ultraviolet rays 
• X-rays and 
• gamma rays

The properties of electromagnetic radiation explain the behaviour of the spectrum by the process of radiation. The emission of electrons in the electric field defines the various types of absorption spectrum that help in performing the dual nature of electromagnetic radiation. Moreover, photons carry different types of quantum energy that implies the wave nature of radiation. The phenomenon of polarization proves the dual behaviour of electromagnetic radiation by the photoelectric effect process.In the dual nature of electromagnetic radiation light depends on the properties of wave radiation or stream of particles.

Theory-based on photoelectric emission 

A different theory is involved in the photoelectric emission, which includes Planck’s quantum theory in the electromagnetic radiation of certain matter. Moreover, the photoelectric effect is explained on the concepts of a quantum theory of radiation. According to this theory, light travels as discrete photons in which energy and frequency of light are conducted in the photoelectric emission. Planck’s theory elaborates the equation of the photoelectric emission and it suggests that the release of electrons from the surface depends on the planck’s constant and the wavelength of the incident photon. The involvement of the Compton effect type of theory helps in increasing the wavelengths of electromagnetic radiations, which is elastically scattered by different electrons. The mechanism of photoelectric emission depends on the physical properties and emission of light in the electric and magnetic fields. Hence, the energy of light is related to specific oscillation frequency to its wavelength.