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If we're seeing the single photon emitted by a single atom, then how much larger is the spot of light in the image compared to the atom that emitted it? Why is
by BuildTheRobots 9y ago
If we're seeing the single photon emitted by a single atom, then how much larger is the spot of light in the image compared to the atom that emitted it?
Why isn't there a ruler somewhere in the picture? My brain is absolutely failing to make sense of the scales and sizes in this image.
- ars 9y ago> then how much larger is the spot of light in the image compared to the atom that emitted it? The atom is about 255 picometers, the light is around 400 nanometers. That makes the light around 1500 times larger than the atom. (Which also helps explain why visible light can not distinguish atoms placed close together - it's so much larger than them.) > Why isn't there a ruler somewhere in the picture? My brain is absolutely failing to make sense of the scales and sizes in this image. The two electrodes are about 2mm apart. About the width (not length) of a sesame seed. It's really small. The photo was taken through a microscope. Another point of reference: the width between the electrodes is about 5,000 times the wavelength of the light being emitted. In theory, if you had a good enough camera, the dot of light would be around 1/5000 of the width. (However the diffraction limit of your lens might enter into play, blurring the image.) And finally, the width between the electrodes is about 8,000,000 times the size of the atom.
- simooooo 9y agoDoesn't it just come down to the size of a pixel in the CCD of the camera? Any photons would have to be rounded up to that size.
- BuildTheRobots 9y agoThank you so much; that was exactly the explanation I needed =)