Polarisation

Learning Objectives: How to use polarisation to tell if a wave is

longitudinal or transverse.

Listen to the cursed song!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjOGNVH3D4Y
All parts of the electro magnetic spectrum travel at the speed of light (3x10^8)
They just have different wavelengths!!

One filter reduces the intake of light, a second can cut it out completely if orientated correctly.

- The blue wave is plane polarised in a vertical plane and so can pass through the first vertical
slot but not the second
- The red wave is plane polarised in a horizontal plane and so cannot even pass through the first
vertical slot
- A plane polarised wave is a transverse whose oscillations are confined to a single plane.
Evidence:
The fact that the light drops to zero after the second filter can only be explained by light being a
transverse wave.
Longitudinal waves cannot be plane polarised, hence this effect cannot be seen.