J-3/137, Lower Ground Floor, Rajouri Garden, New Delhi – 27.

Ph : 41447368, 9811761114

Interference and Diffraction Test

Time: 90 min Max Marks:35
1 What is a phase difference between two points on the same wavefront? 1
2 How does the fringe width, in Young’s double slit experiment, change
1
when the distance of separation between the slits and screen is doubled?
3 How does the angular separation of interference fringes change, in
1
Young’s experiment, if the distance between the slits is increased?
4 What is meant by interference of light? 1
5 In the wave picture of light, intensity of light is determined by the square
of the amplitude of the wave. What determines the intensity of light in the 1
photon picture of light.
6 Sketch the shape of wavefront emerging from a point source of light and
1
also mark the rays.
7 What is the ratio of the fringe width for bright and dark fringes in Young’s
1
double slit experiment?
8 What is the condition that only interference is observed in double slit
1
experiment, diffraction is not?
9 Why are coherent sources required to create interference of light? 1
10 What is the effect on interference fringes in Young’s double slit
1
experiment if one slit is covered?
11 How will the interference pattern in Young’s double slit experiment get
affected, when
(i) distance between the slits S1 and S2 is reduced, and 2
(ii) the entire set-up is immersed in water?
Justify your answer in each case.
12 a) In what way is diffraction from each slit related to the interference
pattern in a double slit experiment?
b) Two wavelengths of sodium light 590 nm and 596 nm are used, in
turn, to study the diffraction taking place at a single slit of aperture 2
2 × 10–4m. The distance between the slit and the screen is 1.5 m.
Calculate the separation between the positions of the first maxima
of the diffraction pattern obtained in the two cases.
13 In a double slit interference experiment, the two coherent beams have
slightly different intensities I and I + δI (δI << I). Show that the resultant 3
|"# |!
intensity at the maxima is nearly 4I while that at the minima is nearly $#
14 a) In Young’s double slit experiment, describe briefly how bright and
dark fringes are obtained on the screen kept in front of a double
slit. Hence obtain the expression for the fringe width.
b) The ratio of the intensities at minima to the maxima in the Young’s
double slit experiment is 9 : 25. Find the ratio of the widths of the
5
two slits.

Page 1 of 2
 J-3/137, Lower Ground Floor, Rajouri Garden, New Delhi – 27. Ph : 41447368, 9811761114

15 a) A monochromatic source of light of wavelength λ illuminates a

narrow slit of width d to produce a diffraction pattern on the screen.
Obtain the conditions when secondary wavelets originating from the
slit interfere to produce maxima and minima on the screen. 5
b) How would the diffraction pattern be affected when
(i) the width of the slit is decreased?
(ii) the monochromatic source of light is replaced by white light?
16 Laser light of wavelength 630 nm incident on a pair of slits produces an
interference pattern in which the bright fringes are separated by 7.2 mm.
4
Calculate the wavelength of another sources of laser light which produces
interference fringes separated by 8.1 mm using same pair of slits.
17 In a single slit diffraction experiment, a slit of width d is illuminated by
red light of wavelength 650 nm. For what value of d will
4
(i) the first minimum fall at an angle of diffraction of 30°, and
(ii) the first maximum fall at an angle of diffraction of 30°?

Page 2 of 2