Physics: Principles with Applications (7th Edition)

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0-32162-592-7
ISBN 13: 978-0-32162-592-2

Chapter 28 - Quantum Mechanics of Atoms - Questions - Page 825: 27

Answer

No.

Work Step by Step

As explained on page 820, a laser beam is very narrow and intense, and the light is a nearly perfect plane wave. Its intensity does not fall off as the inverse square of the distance. Instead, the light intensity stays almost constant as it travels away from the laser. We say “almost constant" because the laser beam is not a perfect plane wave, so there is a tiny bit of lateral spreading after a long distance.
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