photon

[ foh-ton ]

/ ˈfoʊ tɒn /

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noun

a quantum of electromagnetic radiation, usually considered as an elementary particle that is its own antiparticle and that has zero rest mass and charge and a spin of one. Symbol: γ

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Also called light quantum.

Origin of photon

First recorded in 1900–05; phot- + -on¹

Words nearby photon

photomorphogenesis, photomosaic, photo-mount, photomultiplier, photomural, photon, photonasty, photonegative, photoneutron, photonic, photonics

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use photon in a sentence

In a paper published last week in Science, the researchers describe firing a single photon at one of their qubits, which reflects it and in the process becomes entangled with it.
Connecting Distant Qubits Just Brought Distributed Quantum Computing Closer|Edd Gent|February 8, 2021|Singularity Hub
The photons were sent to two locations a kilometer apart, researchers from Nanjing University in China report in a study to appear in Physical Review Letters.
Drones could help create a quantum internet|Emily Conover|January 14, 2021|Science News
A second layer with a slightly different chemical makeup creates a reflective barrier that will prevent photons from escaping as they bounce down the pipe, which acts as a waveguide.
An inside look at how fiber optic glass is made|Stan Horaczek|December 24, 2020|Popular-Science
Determining where the photons end up requires solving a mess of equations brimming with unknowns.
New Quantum Computer in China Claims Quantum Advantage With Light|Jason Dorrier|December 6, 2020|Singularity Hub

Finally, the number of photons in each of the network’s output channels is measured at the end.
The new light-based quantum computer Jiuzhang has achieved quantum supremacy|Emily Conover|December 3, 2020|Science News
When the gamma rays enter the sleeve, they interact with that photon gas, annihilating into electron-positron pairs.
We Can Create Matter from Light?!|Matthew R. Francis|May 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Gregory Breit and John Archibald Wheeler first predicted this photon-photon annihilation in 1934.
We Can Create Matter from Light?!|Matthew R. Francis|May 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The medicine worked because the photon–the quantum bundle of light and the carrier of the electromagnetic force–has no mass.
Finding Higgs Boson, or God Particle, Will Resolve Scientific Mysteries|Frank Close|December 17, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Among his pastimes was designing a solar-power car, the Photon Torpedo.
The Guy Who's Got $700 Billion of Your Money|Ross Goldberg|October 9, 2008|DAILY BEAST
Or, the photon may be retained for a while and emitted again relatively unchanged—the effect observed in luminous paint.
The Mercenaries|Henry Beam Piper
"I think I am getting somewhere on my photon-neutrino-electron interchange-cycle," he announced.
The Mercenaries|Henry Beam Piper
Or there may be an inelastic collision, when the photon hits an atom and knocks out an electron—the old photoelectric effect.
The Mercenaries|Henry Beam Piper
"Well, you know what happens when a photon comes in contact with the atomic structure of matter," Kato said.
The Mercenaries|Henry Beam Piper
There were hundreds of scintillations, each caused by a nuclear particle or photon striking the screen.
The Blue Ghost Mystery|Harold Leland Goodwin

British Dictionary definitions for photon

photon

/ (ˈfəʊtɒn) /

noun

a quantum of electromagnetic radiation, regarded as a particle with zero rest mass and charge, unit spin, and energy equal to the product of the frequency of the radiation and the Planck constant

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for photon

photon

[ fō′tŏn′ ]

The subatomic particle that carries the electromagnetic force and is the quantum of electromagnetic radiation. The photon has a rest mass of zero, but has measurable momentum, exhibits deflection by a gravitational field, and can exert a force. It has no electric charge, has an indefinitely long lifetime, and is its own antiparticle. See Note at electromagnetic radiation. See Table at subatomic particle.

Cultural definitions for photon

photon

[ (foh-ton) ]

The quantum, or bundle of energy, in which light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation are emitted. (See atom.)