How light can vaporize water without the need for heat
news.mit.edu
MIT researchers discovered that light can cause evaporation of water from a surface without the need for heat. This “photomolecular effect” could be important for understanding climate change and for improving some industrial processes.
  • @[email protected]English
    29•7 months ago

    Paper If I understand correctly, it relates to light’s behavior as both a particle and a wave. Photons can “shave” molecules off the surface of water, creating vapor.

    The effect apparently peaks around 520 nm (the visible color cyan, which has lower thermal absorption) and at an angle of 45 deg. Would these results suggest it’s actually possible to induce evaporative cooling with the careful application of light?

    • @Dubiousx99English
      18•7 months ago

      I wonder if it could be used to improve desalination techniques.

      • @[email protected]English
        22•7 months ago

        Was fully prepared for the answer to this to be that a couple extra molecules evaporating don’t make a big difference, but:

        Under the optimum conditions of color, angle, and polarization, Lv says, “the evaporation rate is four times the thermal limit.”

        That sounds legitimately exciting!