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It is shown that Fowler's hypothesis to explain photoemission from metals is not necessary to obtain a spectral dependence of quantum yield near threshold that varies as Y1/2∝ (hν-eφ). It is not possible to distinguish between a Fowler distribution and an isotropic distribution of excited electrons even if rather extreme cases of electron scattering are included. As a result, knowledge that photoemission from a metal follows a Fowler plot does not permit any inferences regarding the nature of the initial excitation.
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Wooten et al. (1969) studied this question.
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