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Problem38 52

This document discusses the momentum, kinetic energy, and recoil of a photon after absorption by an atom. It shows that: 1) The photon momentum is h/λ and the velocity is h/mλ. 2) The kinetic energy of the recoiling atom is h2/2mλ2. 3) The ratio of the kinetic energy to the photon energy is largest when the mass m is small and wavelength λ is small. 4) For a 10.2 eV photon, the wavelength is 122 nm and the kinetic energy of a hydrogen atom is 5.53x10-8 eV, which is quite small compared to the photon energy.

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12 views

Problem38 52

This document discusses the momentum, kinetic energy, and recoil of a photon after absorption by an atom. It shows that: 1) The photon momentum is h/λ and the velocity is h/mλ. 2) The kinetic energy of the recoiling atom is h2/2mλ2. 3) The ratio of the kinetic energy to the photon energy is largest when the mass m is small and wavelength λ is small. 4) For a 10.2 eV photon, the wavelength is 122 nm and the kinetic energy of a hydrogen atom is 5.53x10-8 eV, which is quite small compared to the photon energy.

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IENCS
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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h

38.52: a) Assume a non-relativistic velocity and conserve momentum  mv  


λ
h
v .
mλ
2
1 1  h  h2
b)  K  mv 2  m   .
2 2  mλ  2mλ 2
K h2 λ h
c)   2
  . Recoil becomes an important concern for small m and
E 2mλ hc 2mcλ
small  since this ratio becomes large in those limits.
d) 
hc (6.63  10 34 J  s)(3.00  108 m s)
E  10.2 eV  λ   19
 1.22  10 7 m  122 nm.
E (10.2 eV)(1.60  10 J eV)
(6.63  10 34 J  s) 2
K   8.84  10  27 J  5.53  10 8 eV.
2(1.67  10  27 kg )(1.22  10 7 m) 2
K 5.53  10 8 eV
  5.42  10 9. This is quite small so recoil can be neglected.
E 10.2 eV

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