Gamma rays (ã-rays) are high-energy photons. In a certain nuclear reaction, a ã-ray of energy 0.510 MeV (million electronvolts) is produced. Compute the frequency of such a photon.
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To compute the frequency of a gamma ray photon with energy 0.510 MeV, we can use the equation:
E = hf
Where:
E is the energy of the photon
h is Planck's constant (approximately 6.626 x 10^-34 J·s)
f is the frequency of the photon
First, we need to convert the energy from MeV to joules:
1 MeV = 1.6 x 10^-13 J
So, the energy E in joules can be calculated as:
E = 0.510 MeV x (1.6 x 10^-13 J/1 MeV)
E ≈ 8.16 x 10^-14 J
Now we can rearrange the equation to solve for the frequency f:
f = E / h
Plugging in the values:
f = (8.16 x 10^-14 J) / (6.626 x 10^-34 J·s)
Calculating the frequency:
f ≈ 1.23 x 10^20 Hz (hertz)
Therefore, the frequency of a gamma ray photon with an energy of 0.510 MeV is approximately 1.23 x 10^20 Hz.