The photoelectric effect is the entry point into a geometric restatement of all of quantum mechanics. In the One-Octonion Brane-Bulk Framework: (1) The electron is a standing wave in the Fano lattice — a focal zone that oscillates without propagating. (2) The photon transfers energy by deepening this focal zone, increasing the electron's rest mass by δm = hν/c² before ejection. (3) Ejection occurs when the deepened focal zone exceeds the metal lattice's binding capacity φ — not from a direct photon kick. (4) Frequency selectivity arises because the lattice responds to energy per node-handoff (hν), not total handoff count. This is Prediction P189. More profoundly: a discrete lattice permits only those standing wave modes that fit its node geometry. This means only quantized modes are possible. This is not a postulate — it is a geometric consequence of lattice discreteness. All four pillars of quantum mechanics — Bohr's quantization condition, de Broglie's relation, Schrödinger's energy levels, and Einstein's photoelectric threshold — are projections of this single fact. Mass quantization follows immediately: since mass = focal deceleration = standing wave depth, and only discrete standing wave modes exist, only discrete masses are possible. This is Prediction P190. Quantization is not surprising. It is unavoidable for any standing wave on a discrete lattice. Part of the One-Octonion Brane-Bulk Framework series. Anchor DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19120873. Community: one-octonion-brane-bulk. Author: Bharathi Dasan Jagadeesan, M.D., University of Minnesota. ORCID: 0000-0002-1143-941X.
Bharathi Jagadeesan (Tue,) studied this question.