Thermal Radiation

Wavelength distribution

In reality, at a given temperature, not all atoms vibrate at the same frequency (rate of agitation), but at higher or lower frequencies around an average. The simulation illustrates only this frequency of agitation and the average wavelength emitted.

In the simulation below, deactivate Electrons, then click Play, Grid and Radiation.

Then display Wavelength Distribution to visualize graphically the distribution of wavelengths emitted by the Earth's surface. The plot is higher for frequencies that are more emitted and the peak corresponds to the wavelength most emitted by all atoms.

Vary the temperature to observe how the wavelength distribution varies.