I understand energy is transferred, but if the photon was a ‘carrier’ of energy, what happens to the carrier?
During absorption where do they go, & during emission where do they come from?
In other words, I get that the energy in photons is absorbed into the electron. But what happens to the photon itself?
Likewise, when the energy is emitted from the electron in the form of the photon, where does this new photon come from?
How can a photon disappear into the nothingness or emerge from the nothing?
Update: From my understanding, photons have kinetic energy, which means that they need an object or mass of some kind to carry that. Yes, I know they have no mass, which is why I’m confused here. As in, how can kinetic energy travel just like that on its own without carrier medium of sorts?
In: Physics
Like other bosons (interaction-mediating particles), it doesn’t have mass and literally can appear and disappear, it is simply the form in which this little discrete package of electromagnetic energy gets transported to elsewhere. I must admit that I don’t know why the universe works like that and not differently.
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