Question

Why does electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet region represent a larger energy transition than does radiation in the infrared region?

Answer 1

The energy associated to a photon is given by the equation

`E=h\nu`

where `E` is the energy, `h` is the Planck's constant and `\nu` is the frequency of the photon.

The electromagnetic radiation is composed by photons at a certain frequency. The ultraviolet radiation has a frequency that can range from `800` till `30000` THz.
The infrared radiation has a frequency that can range from `0.3` till `430` THz.

Then, because the Energy is proportional to the frequency, the infrared light has an energy that is lower than the ultraviolet radiation.