What does increasing the intensity of light in the photoelectric effect generally do?

In the context of the photoelectric effect, increasing the intensity of light directly correlates to the number of photons striking the surface, but does not change the energy of individual photons. Each photon carries a specific energy determined by its wavelength. When the intensity is increased, while more photons are available, the energy of the emitted electrons does not inherently increase due to this change.

However, if the light frequency is above the material's threshold frequency, increasing the light intensity leads to a greater number of electrons being emitted, rather than increasing the energy of the emitted electrons. The energy of the emitted electrons is determined by the frequency of the light and the work function of the material, and not directly by the intensity of the light.

In short, the energy of emitted electrons is indeed determined by the frequency of the incoming light. Therefore, if the intensity is increased while the frequency remains constant, the energy of the emitted electrons stays the same. Thus, the correct assertion highlights that while intensity can influence the quantity of emitted electrons (if above the threshold frequency), it does not result in higher energy for individual emitted electrons.