what does json encode do code example

Example 1: json encode

<?php
$age = {"numberPlate":"CPV453","documentType":null,"documentNumber":"12962552","email":"[email protected]","phone":"","entityId":"45500","contactId":"7825235","respCaptcha":"","runtVehicleConfiguration":null}

  
echo json_encode($age);
?>

Example 2: json encode

<?php
$age = array("Peter"=>35, "Ben"=>37, "Joe"=>43);

  
echo json_encode($age);
?>