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The Nature of Light
 
 
Sources of Light
 
Light is produced by one of two methods.•Incandescence is the emission of lightfrom "hot" matter (T 800 K).
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•Luminescence is the emission of lightwhen excited electrons fall to lower energylevels(in matter that may or may not be "hot").
 
 
Sources of Light
•Incandescence is light from heat energy. If you heat something to ahigh enough temperature, it will begin to glow. When an electricstove's heater or metal in a flame begin to glow "red hot", that isincandescence. When the tungsten filament of an ordinaryincandescent light bulb is heated still hotter, it glows brightly "whitehot" by the same means. The sun and stars glow byincandescence.•Luminescence is "cold light", light from other sources of energy,which can take place at normal and lower temperatures. Inluminescence, some energy source kicks an electron of an atom outof its "ground" (lowest-energy) state into an "excited" (higher-energy) state; then the electron gives back the energy in the form of light so it can fall back to its "ground" state.
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