photoelectron
(noun)
Electrons emitted from matter by absorbing energy from electromagnetic radiation.
Examples of photoelectron in the following topics:
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The Photoelectric Effect
- Electrons emitted in this manner may be referred to as photoelectrons.
- For a given metal, there exists a certain minimum frequency of incident radiation below which no photoelectrons are emitted.
- However, if just the intensity of the incident radiation is increased, there is no effect on the kinetic energies of the photoelectrons.
- For a given metal and frequency of incident radiation, the rate at which photoelectrons are ejected is directly proportional to the intensity of the incident light.
- The time lag between the incidence of radiation and the emission of a photoelectron is very small, less than 10−9 second, and is unaffected by intensity changes.
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The Photoelectric Effect
- This is called the photoelectric effect, and the electrons emitted in this manner are called photoelectrons.
- The energy of the individual photoelectrons increased with the frequency (or color) of the light, but was independent of the intensity (or brightness) of the radiation.
- As the frequency of the incoming light increases, each photon carries more energy, hence increasing the energy of each outgoing photoelectron.