Secular Sanity

What? Let's KISS then, shall we? This is what you said "These absorption and re-emission events are what causes the slowing down of the waves, photons always travel at c, they just spend some time absorbed." Is this your explanation of why a photon slows down in a medium? Edit: I was still able to log on. I haven't been banned, yet...bwahahah! If your statement were correct, the index of refraction would only depend on the type of atoms in the material. Graphite and diamond are both made of carbon atoms, and yet their index of refraction is different. Are you attempting to imply that you were referring to the de Broglie or Schrödinger's wave? "Kiss is often wrong." That's because you've never been kissed by me. Mmmwha!...kiss,kiss. See ya!

I didn't misquote you, Klaynos. Here's what you stated...word for word. Perhaps, they can simply place your statement in the Speculations forum. Then mooeyspoo will have more room to do his science.

Oh, I have that book, silly me. Ah yes, Chapter 3, here it is. Recipes for Word Salad by Klaynos Thanks for clearly that up. Cheers! What causes the slowing down of the waves? The explanation that Klaynos provided is basically that a photon moving through the material still moves at the speed of c, but when it encounters the atom of the material, it is absorbed by the atom via an atomic transition. After a very slight delay, a photon is then re-emitted. This explanation is incorrect and inconsistent with empirical observations.

Okay. Now, it would be nice if you threw in something from that book that backs up what you're saying.

Why on earth would you say this? No, dear Mooeypoo, I'm not claiming to know QM better than David Griffiths. Hello! I posted an answer from Griffiths book "Introduction to Electrodynamics". Everything else you said was just um...um...hmm...well, let's just leave it at that, shall we?

Well, his QM description isn't correct. Sorry, but he clearly states that the answer is due to admission and absorption, which is incorrect. How can you argue with that? So, if you simply say that the absorption/emissions are not in "real states" this makes the answer correct? What? Please explain.

Hmm…are you implying that you knew the answer all along, Klaynos? Not in real states? Pfft...that's an answer? Whatever. The original OP was "When light travels from rarer to denser medium and vice versa,velocity and wavelength changes but frequency remains constant. What is the reason?" "As the wave passes through, the fields busily polarize and magnetize all the molecules, and the resulting (oscillating) dipoles create their own electric and magnetic fields. These combine with the fields in such a way, as to create a single wave with the same frequency but different speed. This extraordinary conspiracy is responsible for the phenomenon of transparency and refraction." David Griffiths

Wrong. Pfft…how rude! It's taught in intro to electrodynamics. You added to it but can you answer it, swansont?

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Would you mind answering this question?

What about when the photons do not interact with the electrons by emission or absorption, and pass through the glass unchanged, i.e. transparency? If they are not interacting with the electrons then the photons have not slowed down, right? So what is it exactly that causes refraction ?