answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

You have to take into consideration quantum mechanics and the fact that electrons absorb and emit in packets of energy.

User Avatar

Wiki User

13y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Why does classical physics fail to explain the photoelectric effect?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Continue Learning about Physics
Related questions

Can classical physics explain the photoelectric effect?

No. To explain the photoelectric effect, you have to think of light as a particle, not a wave. The fact that light can be both a wave and a particle is part of quantum mechanics, not classical physics.


What are the reason the classical physics failed?

It is a macroscopic theory. Their theoretical values are not equal to the experimental values. The classical theory cannot explain the photoelectric effect,compton effect,magnetic properties briefly..... it obeys the classical mechanics. it does not briefly explain the atoms internal parts . hence it is rectified by quantum physics....!


Classical physics predicted that?

Any frequencies of light will produce the photoelectric effect


Is there any importance in photoelectric effect?

One of the most revolutionary concepts in physics is the photoelectric effect. The photoelectric effect occurs when radiant energy is impinged on various metals and electrons are ejected from the metal surface. The ejected photoelectrons have a certain kinetic energy which can be measured by the produced voltage. Photoelectric current cannot be explained by the wave theory as diffraction and interference can, however. The photoelectric effect is important because it revealed some of the limitations of the classical wave theory and it gave closer insight into the nature of light- namely the quantization as photons.


Who was the first noble prize winner for photoelectric effect in physics?

albert einstein


Branches of Modern physics and their definitions?

branches of modern physics are the following :) :electromagnetism :relativity :thermodynamics :astronomy :photoelectric effect :))


Which scientist applied the concept of a quantum to explain the photoelectric effect?

einstein


What are the failure of classical physics related to photoelectric effect?

The classical Physcis said that waves and particles are two different components. In Quantum Physics , we know that light ( or eletromagnetic waves ) demonstrates wave-particle duality. In this case, the light behaves as a collection of particles called photons. The energy of each photon is given by hv.


What was the need of modren physics while classical physics already exits?

Classical physics is great at explaining just about everything we can see around us as we go through daily life. But as time went on, we began to observe situations that either classical physics can't explain at all, or else the explanations it gives are either inaccurate or downright screwy. A few examples are: -- blackbody radiation -- the photoelectric effect -- the shape of Mercury's orbit -- the bending of starlight that passes close to the sun -- clocks that run slow at high speeds -- nuclear fission, fusion, and radioactivity -- the expansion of the universe


For what did Einsterin gat Noble prize in physics?

Einstein won the Nobel Prize for his discovery of the Photoelectric Effect and services in physics of his time.


How did Albert Einstein win the Nobel Prize of Physics?

Albert Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his work with the photoelectric effect.


Classical physics CANNOT explain why?

There are many examples of what classical physics can not explain. (By classical physics we mean that which has its theoretical foundations before about 1900.) Quantum mechanics is absent from classical physics. Classical physics can not explain why atoms (positive nucleus attracted to surrounding electrons) is stable. Even the simplest atom, a hydrogen atom, would be unstable and the electron orbiting the proton would gradually radiate its energy and the orbit would decay. The photoelectric effect is an important historical example of the failure of classical physics. In that case, electromagnetic theory said that light was an electromagnetic wave. That was true enough but it does not account for the quantum nature of light and the characteristics that allow a photon to act like a discrete bundle of electromagnetic energy with properties like a particle. Virtually all of our understanding about the atomic structure and properties of matter depends on quantum mechanics, so the example of hydrogen is just symbolic of the need for modern physics for the entirety of our understanding about electronic properties of matter. One can choose to define classical physics to include relativity or not as one wishes, but it is fair to say that Newtonian mechanics does not explain relativistic mechanics. In particular, time dilation and length contraction are purely relativistic effects.