The photoelectric effect refers to the nature of some materials (usually metals) to release electrons in the presence of light

(Tro 2012). In 1905, Albert Einstein proposed that the energy emitted by light is not continuous, but is compartmentalized into individual units called photons (Tro 2012). Einstein based this proposition on the work of Max Planck, who had previously suggested that energy radiated from an object is quantized into entities whose energy is based on the frequency at which the energy is emitted; Planck created a formula that states that the energy emitted by a body is calculated by multiplying the frequency at which energy units are released by a constant that became known as Plancks constant (Hellman n.d.). Similarly, Einstein proposed that the amount of energy contained by a photon depends on the wavelength (and, consequently, the frequency) of light. A longer wavelength and lower frequency produces photons with lower energy than are produced by a shorter wavelength and higher frequency. The intensity, or brightness, of light does not have any effect on the energy of the photons that are emitted, though a higher intensity does increase the rate of photon emission. The ability of a photon to eject electrons from one of these materials depends on the amount of energy contained by the photon and, thus, on the wavelength of the light being emitted (Tro 2012).

One modern day application of the photoelectric effect can be found in a typical digital camera, which contains an integral component called a CCD, or charge-coupled device. A CCD is the component of the digital camera that captures images (Charge 2012). It consists of a silicon chip that is divided into rows of tiny areas called pixels. A layer of equally tiny electrodes, called photosites, covers the chip in a grid pattern in which one electrode is associated with each pixel. Before a photo is taken, the surface of the CCD becomes negatively charged as it is coated with electrons. When a photo is taken, light enters the camera and reaches the photosites on the CCD. Photons containing sufficient energy will eject electrons from the photosites, which are trapped by nonconductive metal that surrounds each site; each site increases in voltage according to the number of electrons ejected. A computer in the camera measures the voltage of each site in order to determine the number of electrons ejected when the photo was taken. Therefore, the voltage of each site is dependent on the frequency and wavelength of the light, the intensity of the light, and the duration of light exposure, as described previously. The information obtained from the collected voltage of each site is then converted to one of several specified colors at each pixel. The combination of thousands of tiny colored pixels is then recognizable to the human eye as a photographic image. The CCD then resets its negative charge, and is ready to capture another image (Long 2005).

References

Charge-coupled device. In World Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11 Apr. 2013, from http://www.oxfordreference.com/

view/10.1093/acref/9780199546091.001.0001/acref-9780199546091-e-2263.

Hellman, B. Planks Constant and the Energy of a Photon. Physics 2000. Retrieved from http://www.colorado.edu/
physics/2000/quantumzone/photoelectric2.html

Long, B. (2005). Complete Digital Photography (3rd ed.). Hingham, MA: Charles River Media, Inc.

Tro, N.J. (2011). Chemistry: A Molecular Approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.