Final answer:
Energy transfer involves the movement of energy from one place or system to another. It can occur when photons are absorbed or emitted, through external forces exerted on a system, and through conduction, convection, or radiation. Examples include a metal wire absorbing heat from hot water and heat spreading across a skillet to cook a steak.
Step-by-step explanation:
Energy transfer is a fundamental concept in physics that describes the movement of energy from one place or system to another. This transfer can occur when photons are absorbed or emitted, through external forces exerted on a system resulting in work, and through processes of conduction, convection, or radiation.
For instance, energy transfer happens when a system absorbs heat or when the surroundings do work on it. An example could be a metal wire immersed in hot water. Here, the wire absorbs heat from the water, and thus energy is transferred into the wire, causing an increase in the wire's internal energy and temperature.
Another common form of energy transfer is conduction, which is heat transfer by physical contact. This process involves the transfer of kinetic energy between particles through collisions. An example of this is cooking a steak on a hot iron skillet. The particles in the skillet gain energy from the flame, vibrate rapidly, and collide with neighboring particles, spreading heat across the skillet, which is then transferred to the steak.
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