Abstract
The classical linear oscillator model provides useful qualitative insights into the interaction of light with matter. In particular, it yields essentially correct results about the complex character of the electric susceptibility and its resonant behavior, and the frequency dependence (dispersion) of the refractive index is explained in a simple and intuitive way. For a more quantitative determination of resonance frequencies and absorption, however, a quantum mechanical description of light–matter interaction is required. Since the optical response of matter is dominated by the electrons, the following discussion concentrates on the interaction of light with these particles.
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Notes
- 1.
The subscripts i and f refer to initial and final; note that the energy E i of the initial state is not necessarily lower than E f .
- 2.
See Table 1.1 for different units of \(\hslash \omega\).
- 3.
A transition might still be possible because of higher order interactions such as quadrupole interactions, but the cross section is smaller by several orders of magnitude in this case.
- 4.
For a derivation see, e.g., Svelto (2010).
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Reider, G.A. (2016). Light–Matter Interaction. In: Photonics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26076-1_6
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