WAVE

OPTICS
LECT-01
 Today’s Goal

Huygen’s Principle

Interference of Waves
Huygen’s Wave Theory-(1678)
1. Light is a Mechanical Wave (requires a medium)

Q) So, if light requires a medium, how does it travel

from Sun to Earth in vacuum?
Ans: Ether hypothesis → A very dilute & highly
elastic medium is spread anywhere in space
called ether. It is untouchable & undetectable.
2. It explained i)Rectilinear Propagation of Light
ii) Reflection iii)Refraction
iv) Interference v) Diffraction

3. It failed to explain Polarisation & Photo electric

effect
Huygen’s Principle

1) Wavefront:
Wave front is the locus of all points of the
medium which oscillate in same phase
Point Source:

The direction of wave propagation is always

perpendicular to wavefront
Source at ∞ or distant source

Linear Source
Secondary Wavelets:
1. Each point on a Wavefront acts
as a source of new disturbance
called secondary wavelets.

2. These wavelets are spherical and

travels with speed of wave.

3. The secondary wavelets spreads

in all direction.
Huygen’s Construction
A common tangent enveloping secondary
wavelets in the forward direction gives new
wavefront.
So what happens to wavelets
travelling in backward direction
Behaviour of Plane Wavefront on Reflection & Refraction
a) Refraction of plane wavefront by a
prism

b) Refraction of a plane wavefront by a

Convex lens
c) Refraction of a plane wavefront by concave lens

d) Reflection of plane wavefront by a Concave Mirror

Q) What is the shape of the wavefront on earth for sunlight?
Equation of a Travelling Wave
 Interference of Waves-

Superposition Principle:
When two or more waves are travelling in the same
medium then the resultant displacement of a particle is
the vector sum of displacement produced by each wave
Q) Two plane monochromatic waves propagating in the same
direction with amplitudes A and 2 A and differing in phase by
π/3 rad superpose. Calculate the amplitude of the resultant
wave.

a) 𝟑𝑨
b) 𝟓𝑨
𝟑
c) 𝟐
𝑨
d) 𝟕𝑨
Coherent Sources
Intensity Of Wave
Resultant Intensity
Constructive Destructive
Interference Interference
Constructive Destructive
Interference Interference
Constructive Destructive
Interference Interference
Q) Two coherent monochromatic light beams of intensities I
and 4I are superposed. What will be the maximum and
minimum possible intensities?

a) 4I,I
b) 3I,I
c) 9I,I
d) 8I,2I
Q) Waves emitted by two identical sources produces
intensity of K unit at a point on screen where path difference
between these waves is λ,calculate the intensity at that point
on screen at which path difference is λ/4

a) K
b) K/2
c) 2K
d) K/ 𝟐
Important Case
Q) If I1=I2=I & phase difference is 𝝓.Find IR