Most of us use microwaves daily, but only a few understand even the basics of how they work. These universal kitchen assistants have become auto-magical gadgets for new generations of users. They don’t need to know what’s inside of them or how the food is cooked.
This idyllic coexistence may go on until a microwave oven breaks. However, even then, there is a way to quickly diagnose and fix the problem via Home Alliance remote assistant (a handy service that allows fixing up to 89% of all issues with home appliances remotely).
For those of you who are curious to know how your microwave oven can do its food heating and cooking magic so quickly and efficiently – check out the following short guide.
The Basics of Electromagnetic Waves
As the name suggests, this oven heats up using microwaves – electromagnetic waves that operate at a frequency of 2.45 GHz. They are also called ultra-high frequency (microwave) radiation.
The structural element that generates microwave radiation in the microwave oven is called a magnetron. It consists of a magnet and a hollow metal cylinder, containing a heated wire.
This wire emits electrons, which, under the influence of a magnetic field, rotate around it and emit microwave waves. A special device then redistributes the radiation in different directions so that food is cooked as evenly as possible.
How Does Microwave Radiation Heat Food?
Almost all food contains water molecules, with which electromagnetic waves interact. To understand how this happens, let’s look at the structure of these molecules:
- A water molecule consists of an oxygen atom bonded to two hydrogen atoms. These bonds involve two electrons. The oxygen atom attracts these electrons, resulting in the accumulation of an excess negative charge near it, which is compensated by the excess positive charge near the hydrogen atoms.
- Think of a molecule as a battery: it has two opposite charges next to each other: + and -. The molecule acts as an electric dipole. If a dipole is affected by an electric field, then it tends to position itself in the direction of the electric field: the positive pole (+) towards a higher potential, the negative pole (–) towards a lower potential.
In an electromagnetic wave, the electric field constantly oscillates, interacting with the water molecules in food, which also oscillates. This movement is then transmitted to all the other atoms in the food. Consequently, an increase in the intensity of atomic movement transforms into an increase in food temperature.
Final Thoughts
Knowing the mechanism by which electromagnetic waves cook food not only demystifies a microwave oven as such but also relieves you from the fear of microwave radiation. The latter cannot do any serious harm to a human body other than heating it.
However, to prevent the consumer from sharing the fate of the chicken, electromagnetic radiation is limited by the working volume of the oven. If you stand near the device, you will not be exposed to radiation. Its metal walls and metal grille on the door stop the propagation of electromagnetic waves in space. They don’t harm people in any way.
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