A Heuristic Point of View about the Creation and Conversion of Light

Maxwell’s theory of electromagnetic processes in empty space differs from the current theoretical models of gases and other matter.

The state of a material body is determined by the positions and speeds of a large finite number of atoms and electrons.

By contrast, the electromagnetic state of a space is described by continuous functions.

Hence, it cannot be determined exactly by any finite number of variables.

Thus, to Maxwell’s theory, the energy of light should be represented by a continuous function of space.

By contrast, the energy of a material body should be represented by a discrete sum over the atoms and electrons.

Hence, the energy of a material body cannot be divided into arbitrarily many small components.

However, according to Maxwell’s theory (or any wave theory), the energy of a light wave emitted from a point source is distributed continuously over an ever larger volume.

Optical experiments observe only time-averaged values, rather than instantaneous values.

The use of continuous spatial functions to describe light may lead to contradictions with experiments especially with light.

Black body radiation, photoluminescence, generation of cathode rays from UV light and other phenomena associated with the generation and transformation of light seem better modeled by assuming that the energy of light is distributed discontinuously in space.

The energy of a light wave emitted from a point source is not spread continuously over ever larger volumes.

Instead, it consists of a finite number of energy quanta that are spatially localized at points of space.

These move without dividing and are absorbed or generated only as a whole.

Black body radiation

Let there be a cavity with perfectly reflecting walls, filled with a number of freely moving electrons and gas molecules that interact via conservative forces whenever they collide with each other just as gas molecules in the kinetic theory of gases.

There are electrons bound to spatially well-separated points by restoring forces that increase linearly with separation.

These electrons also interact with the free molecules and electrons by conservative potentials when they approach very closely.

These electrons, which are bound at points of space, are “resonators”.

They absorb and emit electromagnetic waves of a particular period.

According to the present theory of the generation of light, the radiation in the cavity must be identical to black body radiation.

This radiation may be found by assuming Maxwell’s theory and dynamic equilibrium.

This assumes that resonators exist for every frequency.

Let us:

• neglect the radiation absorbed and emitted by the resonators.
• focus on the implications of thermal equilibrium for the collisions between molecules and electrons

According to the kinetic theory of gases, dynamic equilibrium requires that the average kinetic energy of a resonator equal the average kinetic energy of a freely moving gas molecule.

If we separate the motion of an oscillator electron into 3 components at angles to each other, we find for the average energy E of one of these linear components is:

E = R/N T

• R is the absolute gas constant
• N is the number of “real molecules” in a gram equivalent
• T is the absolute temperature

The energy E is equal to 2/3 the kinetic energy of a single free gas molecule because of the equality the time average values of the kinetic and potential energies of the oscillator.

If the energy of an oscillator takes on a time-average value greater or less than E, then the collisions with the free electrons and molecules would lead to a gain or loss of energy by the gas, different on the average from zero.

Therefore, dynamic equilibrium is possible only when each oscillator has the average energy E.

Planck has derived the condition for the dynamics equilibrium in blackbody radiation, assuming that the radiation is completely random.

E = …

• E is the average energy of a resonator of eigenfrequency ν (per oscillatory component)
• L is the speed of light
• ν is the frequency
• ρνdν is the energy density of the cavity radiation of frequency between ν and ν + dν.

If the radiation energy of frequency ν is not continually increasing or decreasing, the following relations must obtain:

…

or, equivalently,

…

These relations are the conditions of dynamic equilibrium.

They do not show with experiments.

In my model there can be no definite energy distribution between ether and matter.

The wider the range of wave numbers of the oscillators, the greater will be the radiation energy of the space, and in the limit we obtain

…

This condition for dynamic equilibrium:

• lacks agreement with experiment.
• eliminates any possibility for equilibrium between matter and aether.

The wider the range of frequencies of the resonators is chosen the bigger the radiation energy in the space becomes, and in the limit we obtain:

…