How is electromagnetic radiation detected?

Topic 7. Detecting electromagnetic radiation. General principle: For radio signals, the size of the receiving antenna is about the same as the size of the wavelength it is designed to receive. read more

For electromagnetic waves used for communications (radio, TV, cell phones, etc.) , it is common to use an antenna that is one-quarter of the wavelength of the wave to be generated. Unlike a transmitter, the size of the antenna is often driven by other considerations – the physical size of a cell phone, for example. read more

Electromagnetic radiation can't be detected directly. We can only detect when it hits something. It's the collision we detect. This means the electromagnetic radiation no longer exists. Basically, light in motion is undetectable. read more

Electromagnetic radiation is a transverse wave, meaning that its oscillations are perpendicular to the direction of energy transfer and travel. The electric and magnetic parts of the field stand in a fixed ratio of strengths in order to satisfy the two Maxwell equations that specify how one is produced from the other. read more