No, light does not require a medium or particles to propagate. Light is an electromagnetic wave, and it can travel through a vacuum, which is a completely empty space devoid of particles. This phenomenon was established by James Clerk Maxwell's electromagnetic theory in the 19th century.
Unlike sound or water waves, which are mechanical waves and require a medium for their propagation, light is composed of oscillating electric and magnetic fields that can self-propagate through space without the need for a physical medium. These oscillating fields generate self-sustaining electromagnetic waves that travel at a constant speed of approximately 299,792,458 meters per second (in a vacuum), commonly referred to as the speed of light.
The nature of light as an electromagnetic wave was further confirmed by numerous experiments and observations, such as the interference and diffraction patterns observed in the famous double-slit experiment and the ability of light to exhibit both particle-like (photons) and wave-like behavior (wave-particle duality), as demonstrated by experiments like the photoelectric effect and the Compton effect.
It is important to note that while light does not require a medium for its propagation, it can interact with and be influenced by various materials and particles, such as atoms, molecules, and other electromagnetic fields, through phenomena like absorption, reflection, refraction, and scattering.