Verified Solution • 2025–26 Session
moderate
QPage 363: Q6: HC Verma: Concepts of Physics - Volume 2 Photoelectric Effect and Wave-Particle Duality Page 363: Q6 Solution: Should the energy of a photon be called its kinetic energy or…
⚠️ Common Exam Traps & Conceptual Pitfalls
Students often split the relativistic relation $E^2=p^2c^2+m_0^2c^4$ into a "kinetic" $p^2c^2$ part and an "internal" $m_0^2c^4$ part, then label a photon’s $E=pc$ as kinetic energy. In reality a photon has no rest‑mass energy, so its entire $E$ is simply the total energy of the particle, not kinetic energy in the classical sense; avoid using the kinetic/internal terminology for mass‑less quanta.
Should the energy of a photon be called its kinetic energy or its internal energy?
Step-by-Step Verified Solution
**Answer:** The energy of a photon should be called its kinetic energy.
**Step-by-Step Explanation:**
The relativistic energy equation is . Here, corresponds to kinetic energy, and corresponds to internal energy. For a photon, the rest mass . Therefore, , which is purely kinetic energy.
All Questions in this Chapter
QPage 363: Q1
QPage 363: Q2
QPage 363: Q3
QPage 363: Q4
QPage 363: Q5
QPage 363: Q6
QPage 363: Q7
QPage 363: Q8
QPage 363: Q9
QPage 363: Q10
QPage 363: Q11
QPage 363: Q12
QPage 363: Q13
QPage 364: Q1
QPage 364: Q2
QPage 364: Q3
QPage 364: Q4
QPage 364: Q5
QPage 364: Q6
QPage 364: Q7
QPages 363-364: Q1
QPages 363-364: Q2
QPages 363-364: Q3
QPages 363-364: Q4
QPages 363-364: Q5
QPages 363-364: Q6
QPages 363-364: Q7
QPages 363-364: Q8
QPages 363-364: Q9
QPages 363-364: Q10
QPages 363-364: Q11
QPages 363-364: Q12
QPages 363-364: Q13
QPages 363-364: Q14
QPages 365-366: Q1
QPages 365-366: Q2
QPages 365-366: Q3
QPages 365-366: Q4
QPages 365-366: Q5
QPages 365-366: Q6
QPages 365-366: Q7
QPages 365-366: Q8
QPages 365-366: Q9
QPages 365-366: Q10
QPages 365-366: Q11
QPages 365-366: Q12
QPages 365-366: Q13
QPages 365-366: Q14
QPages 365-366: Q15
QPages 365-366: Q16
QPages 365-366: Q17
QPages 365-366: Q18
QPages 365-366: Q19
QPages 365-366: Q20
QPages 365-366: Q21
QPages 365-366: Q22
QPages 365-366: Q23
QPages 365-366: Q24
QPages 365-366: Q25
QPages 365-366: Q26
QPages 365-366: Q27
QPages 365-366: Q28
QPages 365-366: Q29
QPages 365-366: Q30
QPages 365-366: Q31
QPages 365-366: Q32
QPages 365-366: Q33
QPages 365-366: Q34
QPages 365-366: Q35
Related Learning Resources & Exam Preparation
Chapter Practice Bank
Practice all topic-wise questions from Photoelectric Effect and Wave-Particle Duality
Reference Textbook Solutions
Explore complete chapter exercises for HC Verma: Concepts of Physics - Volume 2
Competitive PYQ Question Bank
Browse year-wise authentic previous years' questions with solutions
Authentic CBT Mock Tests
Simulate official exam environment with live timer and percentile scoring