No matter how many ufologists try to encourage us,science fiction writers, space - the sphere of colossal distances, and the paths in it are thousands of years old. The personality factor in comparison with these ways is colossally small. The will of one person before these distances does not mean anything. And with bitterness, perhaps we have to admit: the cosmos is not for man. But this does not prevent us from searching for ways to understand what is happening in the universe, using the discoveries made on Earth. Such, for example, as the Compton effect.
Language of light and mathematics
Astrophysics explains the world only through light andmathematics, other tools of work at hand among scientists of this specialty is almost none. In most cases, the astrophysicist is not able to take a sample or be a direct witness of the process. And only on the discrepancies in the theoretical calculation the scientist establishes the truth. Well, the relative truth, at the appropriate moment in the development of science. Still inconsistent? So, there is work for a fellow researcher or a student of this scientist.
The essence of the phenomenon
The Compton effect occurs when a photon,which has a high energy, collides with an atom (more often with a molecule, because most of the substances on the earth's surface are still molecular). So, the photon collides with the atom. In this case, the "affected" side part with the electrons of the outer shells. Only this is not limited to - the radiation wave scattered as a result of the collision changes the frequency, and the classical theory of waves can not understand this phenomenon, Compton effect.
Historical reference
The events that take place prove the views of Einsteinto a photon as a particle. The discovery of the effect took place a long time ago, and for him Compton received the Nobel Prize (namely, in 1927). The discovery of the effect contributed to the understanding of the nature of light, because even the very term "photon" was created in 1926. That is why colleagues highly appreciated Compton's result.
Constants are everywhere
The Compton formula includestrigonometric functions, because the only value that is a variable in this formula is the angle of incidence of the photon. Accordingly, the whole equation can be reduced to one constant 2, 42, which is multiplied by 10 in the minus twelfth. The unit of measure is meters, that is, it is an abstract expression of the length of the shift. In fact, it was created simply for convenience.
Understand the monsters
In astrophysics, the Compton effect is not used, buteffect, inverse to it. With the knowledge of this physical phenomenon, it became possible to study the so-called black holes. The reverse Compton effect consists in the fact that electrons moving at light speed in the corona of a black hole collide with low-energy photons and change their frequency. So scientists can establish the characteristics of a black hole, approximately estimate the quantitative processes occurring in a pair of merging black holes.
Black holes are not the only "patient" whoseFeatures can be studied by an astrophysicist using the Compton effect. Another phenomenon is judged on the accumulation of galaxies, since particles passing by photon sources change frequency. Also, the effect of the described effect is subjected to background radiation - the ancient voice of the universe. Perhaps you can understand this world better if you are keen on astrophysics?
