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ABOUT YOUR MICROWAVE
How do microwaves work?
Microwaves are high-frequency electromagnetic waves
similar to radio waves. While radio waves may vary in
length from one metre to many kilometres, microwaves are
very short (less than 12.5 centimetres.)
Microwaves do not make any heat themselves but cause
water molecules in food to vibrate.
This vibration produces heat that cooks the food. This is
why your food will come out of the microwave piping hot,
when your utensils inside the oven stay much cooler. The
microwaves do not stay in the air or in the food when you
open the microwave oven door.
The microwave oven will work using an ordinary household
electrical socket. Inside the microwave oven is the
magnetron, which turns the electrical energy into
microwaves.
Microwaves cannot travel through metal, so the inside of
the oven is lined with metal. The door is lined with a fine
metal mesh which stops microwaves getting through. This
means that when the microwave oven door is shut, there is
no possibility that microwaves can be released.
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