Episode 500: Preparation for quantum physics topic

Students may think that they have no direct experience of quantum physics and its consequences. Nothing could be further from the truth: e.g. all modern electronics relies on quantum physics.

Main aims of this topic

Quantum physics

Students will:

• know that atoms absorb and emit light as quanta (photons)
• explain how this is used to explain emission spectra
• know how to calculate photon energies
• describe the photoelectric effect, and explain it in terms of photons and electrons
• describe an experiment to determine Planck’s constant using the photoelectric effect

Prior knowledge

Students should be familiar with the nuclear model of the atom. They should know that metals contain free (conduction) electrons.

Where this leads

These episodes (and work on lasers) lead on to general ideas about wave-particle duality.