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This is a list of sources of light, the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum.Light sources produce photons from another energy source, such as heat, chemical reactions, or conversion of mass or a different frequency of electromagnetic energy, and include light bulbs and stars like the Sun. Reflectors (such as the moon, cat's eyes, and mirrors) do not actually produce the light that ...
Another example is incandescent light bulbs, which emit only around 10% of their energy as visible light and the remainder as infrared. A common thermal light source in history is the glowing solid particles in flames, but these also emit most of their radiation in the infrared and only a fraction in the visible spectrum.
Luminous energy is related to radiant energy by the expression = / ¯ (). Here λ {\displaystyle \lambda } is the wavelength of light, and y ¯ ( λ ) {\displaystyle {\overline {y}}(\lambda )} is the luminous efficiency function , which represents the eye's sensitivity to different wavelengths of light.
In 1905, Albert Einstein published a paper advancing the hypothesis that light energy is carried in discrete quantized packets to explain experimental data from the photoelectric effect. Einstein theorized that the energy in each quantum of light was equal to the frequency of light multiplied by a constant, later called the Planck constant. A ...
Photons can also be absorbed by nuclei, atoms or molecules, provoking transitions between their energy levels. A classic example is the molecular transition of retinal (C 20 H 28 O), which is responsible for vision, as discovered in 1958 by Nobel laureate biochemist George Wald and co-workers.
Energy portal selected pictures. Picture 1. Photo credit: ... Fire is a rapid oxidation process that creates heat and light, together with smoke and other products of ...
Light with the same radiant intensity at other wavelengths has a lower luminous intensity. The curve which represents the response of the human eye to light is a defined standard function y (λ) or V (λ) established by the International Commission on Illumination (CIE, for Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage ) and standardized in ...
Photoexcitation is the first step in a photochemical process where the reactant is elevated to a state of higher energy, an excited state.The first law of photochemistry, known as the Grotthuss–Draper law (for chemists Theodor Grotthuss and John W. Draper), states that light must be absorbed by a chemical substance in order for a photochemical reaction to take place.