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In Einstein's Photon Theory of Light, he proposed that light consists of distinct chunks or distinct packets of energy called photon and the energy of a photon is given by :

$E=hν$

where $ν$ is the frequency of light. I have a question. Einstein said that light is made up of particles called photons. But at the same time he is also saying that $E=hν$. In this equation, there is frequency which is clearly a characteristic of a wave. How is he associating property of a wave to a particle? How can a photon have frequency? It is a particle, right? It doesn't make sense. It is like he is combining wave and particle to create hybrid between the two. Can someone please explain this?

Qmechanic
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RIPAN BARUAH
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  • Possible duplicate: https://physics.stackexchange.com/q/273032 – Nihar Karve Jun 09 '21 at 15:06
  • An electromagnetic field with frequency $\nu$ can only gain or lose energy in multiples of $h\nu$. Each packet (or quantum) of the field, with energy $h\nu$, is a photon. If the energy in the field (within a given volume of space) is a small multiple of $h\nu$ then the individual photons behave like particles. However, if the energy in the field is a large multiple of $h\nu$ then the population of photons behaves like a wave.

    Einstein recognised this duality, although he was never entirely convinced that this was the whole story.

     – gandalf61 Jun 09 '21 at 15:29

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I prefer to think of a photon as an EM wave “packet” of finite size and with a discrete amount of energy. It can interfere with itself to produce a probability pattern which can be measured in centimeters. The intensity of the wave at any point determines the probability that all of the energy of the packet may be absorbed by some other entity (like an electron) at that point.

R.W. Bird
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  • A photon has a precise momentum and is therefore not localized. There is nothing particle like about it. – Jan Bos Jun 10 '21 at 14:41
  • The “particle” idea comes from the fact that all of the energy (and momentum) of a wave packet with a “coherence length” in centimeters can be absorbed by an entity the size of an atom. – R.W. Bird Jun 10 '21 at 21:41