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From: mej@hlwpc.UUCP (Michael Jacobs)
Newsgroups: net.sci
Subject: Re: Questions on PHOTONS
Message-ID: <631@hlwpc.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 18-Nov-85 17:30:46 EST
Article-I.D.: hlwpc.631
Posted: Mon Nov 18 17:30:46 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 19-Nov-85 03:50:09 EST
References: <1092@mtuxo.UUCP> <petrus.679> <169@ccnysci.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Short Hills, NJ
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Several people have responded to this question saying
that since there is no such thing as a perfect mirror,
the light inside the mirrored chamber would increase
only to a finite limit.
This doesn't make sense to me;  if you are constantly adding
light (photons) and only a small fraction can go away (presumable
as heat) then it seems to me the number of photons (and 
intensity of light) should continue to increase unbounded.

Am I missing something here?

By the way, a related question is, what would happen if
you fired a strobe once in the chamber?  I think the answer
is that the light would echoe around the room for awhile
and gradually die out as the mirrors heated up.
:.