Photon Power
How much power is packed inside one photon?
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Quarky is writing this for you...
Your turn!
Question 1 of 2Which photon carries more energy?
The story
Quarky builds a tiny solar sail and tries to push it with a single photon. One photon is a very gentle nudge, but its energy depends on its color: blue photons carry more punch than red ones. Quarky learns that solar panels work because photons knock electrons loose, and that is how sunlight becomes electricity for houses, calculators and even spacecraft.
What you'll learn
- A photon carries a fixed amount of energy
- Bluer light carries more energy than redder light
- Photons can knock electrons free from materials
- That is how solar panels turn sunlight into electricity
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