How Does A Microwave Oven Work? How Hot Does It Get?

A microwave oven contains a tube called the magnetron tube which converts electricity into high frequency microwaves. Microwaves are a type of electromagnetic energy and occupy a part of the electromagnetic spectrum. They cause food molecules to vibrate rapidly, creating a friction that produces heat and helps in cooking the food.

Food cooked in a microwave oven simply absorbs microwave and turns the energy emitted by these microwaves into thermal energy, which in turn helps cook the food. The cooking chamber of the microwave doesn't get hot so there is almost no heat produced.

So you cannot really say how hot the machine gets. It cooks food with electromagnetic energy and not heat. A microwave cooks with time rather than heat. So the amount of heat supplied is less and same throughout the process. This is why cooking food is better in a microwave oven than in a regular one.