When photons are absorbed there is always some change in the absorber. Absorption is the end for the photon: it is destroyed...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Both photons and particles can shift enough energy to to convert the absorber atoms to ions. Detect these ions and you'll have...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Fast-moving charged particles can rather easily shift energy to atoms and so strip electrons–that is, ionise the atoms. There...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Counting the arrival of ionising radiations is a cumulative affair–the result is an ever-increasing number. Just count the...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Energy is measured in joule–except when it's not. For historical reasons there are a number of other measures of energy for...

Physics Narrative 14-16

If you want to be safe from those ionising photons then there is no substitute for plenty of absorber atoms between you and...

Physics Narrative 14-16

An atom or molecule is ionised by having at least one electron stripped from it:

Physics Narrative 14-16

Both photons and particles can shift enough energy to atoms or molecules to ionise these targets. Although the mechanisms are...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Photons have a frequency–they are a radiation, one way of describing the essential process of do like me, later that connects...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Photons shift energy chunk by chunk on emission. Whatever the emitter, the photons deplete a store little by little, with the...

Physics Narrative 14-16

Particles that ionise must also shift significant quantities of energy, and it is this that (again) suggests that they are...

Physics Narrative 14-16

There is a very precise and important result that follows from the inability to alter the chance that an ionising radiation is...

Physics Narrative 14-16