thermal radiation

Also known as heat radiation

electromagnetic radiation generated by the thermal motion of charged particles in matter

AI overview

Thermal radiation is electromagnetic energy that's produced whenever the atoms and charged particles in any material are moving around due to heat. It matters because it's how objects release energy into their surroundings — from the warmth you feel from a fire to the infrared light that thermal cameras detect.

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Subclass of: electromagnetic radiation

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described by source: Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia

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Encyclopedic overview

Thermal radiation in visible light can be seen on this hot metalwork. Its emission in the infrared is invisible to the human eye. Infrared cameras are capable of capturing this infrared emission (see Thermography).

Thermal radiation is electromagnetic radiation emitted by the thermal motion of particles in matter. All matter with a temperature greater than absolute zero emits thermal radiation. The emission of energy arises from a combination of electronic, molecular, and lattice oscillations in a material.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “thermal radiation” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

thermal radiation

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