How Is Light Both a Particle and a Wave?

The behavior of light cannot be explained solely by models of particles or solely by models of waves. If light is a particle, then why does it refract when travelling from one medium to another? And if light is a wave, then why does it dislodge electrons? But all behavior of light can be explained by combining the two models: light behaves like particles and light behaves like waves.

It’s not as odd as it might seem, either. Particles and waves are sometimes conceived as opposites, but they’re not. Also, light is not the only thing that exhibits behavior of both particles and waves. Other quantum entities also have this behavioral duality, and wave-particle duality is a key focus of the study of quantum mechanics.