- Photophoresis
In
physics , photophoresis is the phenomenon that intenselight induces motion in particles suspended in agas . The causes are generally distinct fromradiation pressure . Just like inCrookes radiometer , light can heat up one side and gas molecules bounce from that surface with greater velocity, hence push the particle to the other side.One should note that under certain conditions (for example with particles of length comparable to the wavelength of light), the far side from the light source may heat up more, and the particle moves towards the source. This phenomenon is called "negative photophoresis".
Discovery is usually attributed to
Felix Ehrenhaft , though earlier observations were made by others includingAugustin-Jean Fresnel .External links
* [http://www.uni-muenster.de/Planetologie/en/groups/emmy/photophoresis.html Photophoresis] in the context of
astrophysics
* [http://www.chem.scphys.kyoto-u.ac.jp/nonnonWWW/watanabe/studies/photophoresis/index.html.en Negative photophoresis]
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