- #1
exmarine
- 241
- 11
The interaction of light with matter, or EM waves in general, falls into 3 categories: transparent where they pass through, opaque where they are scattered, and shiny where they are reflected. What on the quantum mechanical level about the atoms electrons determines those properties? I think the electrons in metals are very loosely bound, so they can respond almost without resistance to the incoming waves and thus form a reflective boundary condition. Is that correct, and what about the other two?