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Why is glass transparent?

Why is glass transparent?

By NiksPublished 10 months ago 3 min read
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Look out your window, and if you wear glasses, put them on. Perhaps you should also take a set of binoculars or a magnifying glass. What do you see right now? Whatever it is, it's not the thick panes of glass in front of you, I suppose. However, have you ever questioned how something so substantial could be so invisible? We must comprehend what glass actually is and where it comes from in order to comprehend that. The two most prevalent elements in the Earth's crust, silicon and oxygen, are where it all starts.Together, they react to create silicon dioxide, whose molecules arrange themselves into quartz, a regular crystalline form. Sand is a popular place to find quartz, which is the primary component of most types of glass and frequently makes up the majority of the grains. You probably observed that glass isn't composed of numerous tiny pieces of quartz, and there's a good explanation for that. For starters, light that strikes the tightly formed grains' edges and minor crystal structure flaws is reflected and dispersed by them. However, when quartz is heated sufficiently, the increased energy causes the molecules to vibrate to the point where they lose the bonds that hold them together and turn into a flowing liquid. similarly to how ice melts into water. However, when silicon dioxide cools down, it does not crystallize like water does. An amorphous solid is created as a result of the molecules' decreasing ability to shift into an ordered arrangement as they lose energy. a substance that is solid but has a liquid's chaotic structure, allowing any gaps to be filled in by molecules at will. In a microscopic sense, this uniformizes the surface of glass so that light can pass through it without being scattered in various directions. This does not, however, explain why light can flow through glass as opposed to being absorbed, as it would do in most substances. We have to descend all the way to the subatomic level for it. Although you may already be aware that an atom is made up of an orbiting nucleus and electrons, you might be startled to learn that most of the atom is actually empty space. In fact, if an atom were the size of a sporting event, the electrons would occupy the outer rows and the nucleus would be like a single pea in the center. That ought to provide light enough of room to travel through without colliding with any of these particles. In this case, the true question is why aren't all materials transparent rather than why glass is transparent. The various energy levels that electrons in an atom can have are what the solution is. Imagine these as various stadium stands' rows of seats. An electron is initially given a specific row to sit in, but if it had the energy, it could move to a better row. As luck would have it, the electron can obtain the energy it requires by absorbing one of the light photons that are travelling through the atom. There's a catch, though. To move an electron to the following row, the photon's energy must be just right. In glass, the rows are spaced so far apart that a photon of visible light cannot give enough energy for an electron to jump between them. If it doesn't, it will just let the photon pass by. On the other hand, photons from ultraviolet light have the perfect amount of energy and are absorbed, which is why you can't tan through glass. Glass has been used for a variety of things throughout history thanks to its incredible ability to be both solid and translucent. From lenses that let us to see both the huge planets beyond our globe and the tiny ones right around us, to windows that let in light while keeping out the elements. Without glass, modern society is difficult to imagine. Yet despite its importance, we hardly ever consider the effects of glass. We frequently overlook the existence of glass since it is featureless and invisible, which is also its most valuable property.

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Niks

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