alleryStart learning →What name is given to a single self-contained packet of electromagnetic energy?
AAn isotope
BA neutron
CA photon
DAn electron
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. A photon
1. Some experiments show light spreading out like a wave.
2. Others show it arriving in separate lumps of energy.
3. Each such packet of electromagnetic energy is called a photon.
4. A neutron and an electron are pieces of matter, so neither one names a packet of light.
_Source: OpenStax Astronomy (CC BY 4.0), Ch 4 "Earth, Moon, and Sky" and Ch 5 "Radiation and Spectra", section 5.1 The Behavior of Light_
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