PANDIT DEENDAYAL PETROLUM UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY, GANDHINAGAR

TUTORIAL SHEET OF WAVE OPTICS
Interference:
Q.1 (a) What is meant by interference of light? State the fundamental conditions for obtaining
sustained interference pattern.
(b) Describe the interference pattern obtained due to superposition of the coherent
waves. Write an expression for the intensity distribution over the plane of observation.
Plot the resultant intensity as a function of distance on the screen.
Q.2 Light from a sodium vapor lamp (589 mm) forms an interference pattern on a screen 0.8 m
from a pair of slits. The bright fringes in the pattern are 0.35 cm apart. What is the slit
separation? (Ans: 0.135 nm)
Q.3 In a young’s double slit experiment, the slits are 2 mm apart and are illuminated with a
mixture of two wavelength, λ=750 nm and λ’=900 nm. At what minimum distance from
the common central bright fringe on a screen wm from the slits will a bright fringe from
one interference pattern coincide with a bright fringe from the order? (Ans: 4.5 mm)
Q.4 Obtain an expression for fringe width in wedged shaped thin film. How it used for testing
the optically flat surface?
Q.5 The rhinestones in costume jewelry are glass with index of refraction 1.50. To make them
more reflective, they are often coated with a layer of silicon monoxide of refraction 2.00.
what is the minimum coating thickness needed to ensure that light of wavelength 560 nm
and of perpendicular incidence will be reflected from the two surfaces of the coating with
fully constructive interference? (Ans: )
Q.6 (a) How are the Newton’s ring s formed? Draw a net diagram showing the formation of
Newton’s rings, as well as the experimental set up. Why are the rings circular? How are the
ring diameter and film thickness related? Why the rings are not evenly spaced?
(b) How can Newton’s ring experiment be used to determine the refractive index of liquid?
(c) In Newton’s ring are formed by light of 400 nm wavelength. (i) Between the third and
sixth bright fringe what is the change in thickness of the air film? (ii) If the radius of
curvature surface is 5.0 m, what is the radius of the third bright fringe?
[ Ans; (i) 600 nm (ii) 2.2 mm]
Q.7 (a) Explain Michelson interferometer, In details.
(b) If movable mirror in Michelson interferometer is moved through 0.233 mm, a shift of
792 fringes occurs. What is the wavelength of the light producing the fringes?
(Ans: 588 nm)
Q.8 In Young’s double-slit experiment, suppose the separation between the two slits is
d=0.320 mm. If a beam of 500-nm light strikes the slits and produces an interference
pattern. How many maxima will there be in the angular range −°45.0< θ <°45.0?
Q.9 In the double-slit interference experiment, suppose d=0.100mm and L=1.00 m, and the
incident light is monochromatic with a wavelength λ=500 nm,
(a) What is the phase difference between the two waves arriving at a point P on the screen
when θ=0.800°?
(b) What is the phase difference between the two waves arriving at a point P on the screen
when y=4.00 mm?
(c) If φ =1/3 rad, what is the value of θ?
(d) If the path difference is /4δλ=, what is the value of θ?

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Q.10 Let the intensity on the screen at a point P in a double-slit interference pattern be 60.0%
of the maximum value.
(a) What is the minimum phase difference (in radians) between sources?
(b) In (a), what is the corresponding path difference if the wavelength of the light is λ=500
nm?
Diffraction:
Q.11 (a) What do you understand by diffraction of light? Distinguish clearly between
interference and diffraction of light.
(b)Distinguish between Fresnel and Fraunhoffer classes of diffraction.
(c)Why is the diffraction of sound waves more evident in daily experience than that of light
waves?
Q.12 Write the physical significance of intensity distribution of single slit, double slit and N-slit
diffraction pattern.
Q.13 (a) Why do you understand by the resolving power of a grating? Derive an expression for
it. Explain Rayleigh criterion for resolution.
(b) A diffraction grating which 4000 lines to a cm is used at normal incidence. Calculate the
dissipative power of the grating in the third order spectrum in the wavelength region 5000
Å.
Q.14 Light of wave length 600 nm is incident normally on a diffraction grating. Two adjacent
maxima occur at angle gin by sinθ=0.2 and sinθ=0.3. the fourth order maxima are missing,
(a) What is the separation between adjacent slits
(b) What is the smallest slit width this grating can have
(c) Which order intensity maxima are produced by the grating, assuming the values
derive in (a) and (b)
Q.15 A monochromatic light is incident on a single slit of width 0.800 mm, and a diffraction
pattern is formed at a screen which is 0.800 m away from the slit. The second-order bright
fringe is at a distance 1.60 mm from the center of the central maximum. What is the
wavelength of the incident light?
Q.16 Coherent light with a wavelength of λ = 500 nm is sent through two parallel slits, each
having a width a=0.700μm. The distance between the centers of the slits is d=2.80 μm. The
screen has a semi-cylindrical shape, with its axis at the midline between the slits.
(a) Find the direction of the interference maxima on the screen. Express your answers in
terms of the angle away from the bisector of the line joining the slits.
(b) How many bright fringes appear on the screen?
(c) For each bright fringe, find the intensity, measured relative to the intensity I0 associated
with the central maximum.
Polarization:
Q.17 (a) What is polarized light? What are the differences between polarized and unpolarized
light?
Q.18 Write short note on Optical Activity.
Q.19 What is quarter wave plate? deduce its thickness for a given λ in terms of its refractive
indices
Q.20 Discuss the production of polarized light.

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