Question

Explain the following, giving reasons :

(i) When monochromatic light is incident on a surface separating two media, the reflected and refracted
light both have the same frequency as the incident frequency.

(ii) When light travels from a rarer to a denser medium, the speed decreases. Does this decrease in speed imply a reduction in the energy carried by the wave ?

iii) In the wave picture of light, intensity of light is determined by the square of the amplitude of the wave. What determines the intensity in the photon picture of light ?

Answer 1

(i) Both the reflection and refraction take place due to the interaction of light with the atoms at the surface of the separation. Light incident on these atoms, force them to vibrate with the frequency of light. But, the light emitted by these charged atoms is equal to their own frequency of oscillation. So, both the reflected and refracted lights have same frequency.

(ii) The energy carried by a wave depends on the amplitude of the wave. It does not depend on the speed of the wave propagation. Hence the energy of the wave remains same and does not decrease.

(iii) The intensity of light is determined by the number of photons incident per unit area around the point at which intensity is to be determined.