VISIBLE LIGHT
★ the only part of the EM
spectrum visible to the human
eye.
visible light spectrum
➢ when white light passes through
a prism, it is separated into its
constituent colors: the red,
orange, yellow, green, blue,
indigo and violet. these colors
do not distinctly separate but
they continuously change from
red to violet. red has the longest
wavelength from among these
colors and violet has the
shortest.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
OF VISIBLE LIGHT
a. enables us to see things around
us. it also gives light to the
screen of most electronic
devices.
b. artificial lights
★ artificial lights like flashlight,
lamp etc. are any light source
that produce light instead of
natural lights produced by the
sun.
c. optical fibers
★ one use of optical fibers in
medicine is endoscope, a
flexible tube with a tiny camera
that is used to observe the
internal parts of the body.
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
★ lies just beyond the violet end of
the visible spectrum.
★ reach us with the sun as its
main source.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
a. production of vitamin D in our
skin
★ ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation in
sunlight interact with a protein
(7-DHC) in the skin, converting
it into vitamin D3, the active
form of vitamin D, which is
essential for maintaining healthy
bones and teeth.
b. security markings
★ sensitive documents such as
credit cards, banknotes, and
passports include a UV
 watermark that is only seen
under UV emitting light.
c. sterilization of water
★ ultraviolet light disinfection is
one water treatment system that
can be used to remove most
forms of microbiological
contamination from water.
d. fluorescence
★ some washing powder contains
fluorescent chemicals which
glow in sunlight. This makes
your shirt look whiter than white
in daylight.
X-RAY
★ are emitted when fast moving
electrons hit a metal target.
★ are also called the “penetrating”
radiation.
★ discovered by Wilhelm Conrad
Roentgen in 1895.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
OF X-RAY
a. diagnosing bone fractures
★ long wavelength x-rays can
penetrate the flesh but not the
bones. that's why it is used in
diagnosing bone fractures.
b. inspection of welded metal
joints
★ radiographic testing (RT) is a
method of weld testing that
makes use of short wavelength
X-rays for faults.
c. airport security scanner
★ the short wavelength X-rays can
penetrate through metals which
can be used in airport security
scanner.
GAMMA RAYS
★ are shortest in wavelength and
highest in frequency.
★ are emitted by stars and some
radioactive substances.
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
OF GAMMA RAYS
a. radiotherapy
★ gamma rays are used to treat
tumors and cancer through the
process called radiotherapy. the
high-energy rays of gamma
destroys cancer cells in the
area where it is given.
b. sterilization of surgical
instruments
★ gamma rays sterilize surgical
instruments because they easily
penetrate through materials and
the energy they release kills
bacteria and other
microorganisms.
 EFFECTS OF EM
RADIATION ON LIVING
THINGS
★ the effect of EM radiation
on organisms and
environment depends on
how much energy it
carries. radiation can be
non-ionizing and ionizing.
★ the division of
non-ionizing and ionizing
radiation occurs in the
ultraviolet region of the
EM spectrum.
non-ionizing radiation
➔ a type of low-energy radiation
that does not have enough
energy to remove an electron
from an atom or molecule.
➔ radio waves, microwaves,
infrared radiation, visible light
and low-energy ultraviolet rays
are non-ionizing radiation.
effects of non-ionizing
radiation
in radio waves
a. AM and FM radio broadcasts,
Wi-Fi signals, cell phones,
amateur radio, and television
use radio frequency (RF)
waves. this type of non-ionizing
radiation is absorbed
throughout the body.
b. the effects of RF waves on the
body are in terms of heat
generation. exposure to
electromagnetic fields in this
frequency range can warm up
exposed tissues because these
absorb the radio wave and
convert these into heat.
c. the frequency level determines
the depth of penetration into the
body. for example, using a cell
phone causes the ear and/or
head to get warm. warming up
by this radiation is the most
dangerous for the brain, eyes,
genitals, stomach, liver and
kidneys.
d. there is no scientific proof that
RF non-ionizing radiation
increases the risk of cancer.
in microwaves
a. microwave radiation (MW)
comes from microwave ovens,
radar, transmission towers,
satellite transmissions, the sun
and Cosmic Microwave
Background (CMB) radiation.
b. microwaves excite the water
molecules and cause them to
vibrate, generating heat. atoms
and molecules can also emit
and absorb MW radiation.
c. overexposure to MW radiation
can cause cataracts and skin
burns.
in infrared radiation
a. everything on Earth gives off
some amount of infrared (IR)
radiation. the human eye can’t
see most of the IR spectrum,
but we can feel it as heat.
b. about half of the total energy
the sun gives off is in the form
 of IR radiation, which we feel as
heat. in large amounts, this type
of radiation can damage the
eyes and even cause blindness.
c. IR radiation from the sun is
normally absorbed by the
Earth’s surface and the clouds,
then released as heat into the
atmosphere.
d. when the atmosphere has a lot
of water vapor, along with
nitrogen, sulfur and
fluorocarbons, the IR radiation
gets trapped and causes the
atmospheric temperature to
rise. this is called the
greenhouse effect. temperature
increases like this cause
changes in the weather patterns
on Earth and lead to climate
change.
in visible light
a. the visible light portion of the
electromagnetic spectrum can
be seen by humans, animals
and other organisms. this type
of light consists of seven colors:
red, orange, yellow, green, blue,
indigo and violet.
b. when all the colors are present
at one time, the light is white.
c. rainbows are created when
visible light passes through
raindrops. the raindrops act like
a prism and break the light
down into its individual colors.
d. overexposure to visible light can
damage both the eyes and skin.
in ultraviolet radiation
a. ultraviolet radiation comes from
the sun, welding, black lights
and UV lasers. the sun emits
UVA, UVB and UVC rays. UVC
rays are absorbed by the ozone
layer and never actually reach
the Earth.
★ ultraviolet A (UVA) has a longer
wavelength. it is associated with
skin aging.
★ ultraviolet B (UVB) has a
shorter wavelength. it is
associated with skin burning.
b. both UVA and UVB light are
important for humans in the
production of Vitamin D.
however, the effects of
overexposure to UV rays can be
negative and can be immediate
or delayed. Sunburn, skin
cancer and cataracts develop
over time with excessive
exposure.
ionizing radiation
➔ a form of energy that acts by
removing electrons from atoms
and molecules of materials that
include air, water, and living
tissue.
➔ ionizing radiation can travel
unseen and pass through these
materials.
➔ high-energy ultraviolet rays,
x-rays and gamma rays are
ionizing radiation.
- ionizing radiation is a type of
energy released by atoms that
travels in the form of EM waves
(gamma or X-rays) or particles
(neutrons, beta or alpha).
radioactivity
★ spontaneous disintegration of
atoms and the excess energy
emitted is a form of ionizing
radiation.
radionuclides
★ unstable elements which
disintegrate and emit ionizing
radiation
ALPHA RADIATION
➔ occurs when an atom
undergoes radioactive decay,
giving off a particle (called an
alpha particle) consisting of two
protons and two neutrons
(essentially the nucleus of a
helium-4 atom).
★ the health effect from exposure
to alpha particles depends
greatly on how a person is
exposed.
➔ alpha particles lack the energy
to penetrate even the outer
layer of skin, so exposure to the
outside of the body is not a
major concern.
➔ inside the body, however, they
can be very harmful. If
alpha-emitters are inhaled,
swallowed, or get into the body
through a cut, the alpha
particles can damage sensitive
living tissue.
➢ the way these large, heavy
particles cause damage makes
them more dangerous than
other types of radiation. the
ionizations they cause are very
close together - they can
release all their energy in a few
cells. this results in more severe
damage to cells and DNA.
BETA RADIATION
➔ the emission of a beta particle
from the nucleus of an atom
➔ beta radiation takes the form of
either an electron or a positron
(a particle with the size and
mass of an electron, but with a
positive charge) being emitted
from an atom.
★ some beta particles are capable
of penetrating the skin and
causing damage such as skin
burns.
★ though it is more penetrating
than alpha particle, beta
 particles are less damaging to
living tissue and DNA.
★ however, as with alpha-emitters,
beta-emitters are most
hazardous when they are
inhaled or swallowed.
NEUTRON RADIATION
➔ neutron radiation consists of a
free neutron, usually emitted as
a result of spontaneous or
induced nuclear fission.
➔ able to travel hundreds or even
thousands of meters in air, they
are however able to be
effectively stopped if blocked by
a hydrogen-rich material, such
as concrete or water.
GAMMA RADIATION
★ not typically able to ionize an
atom directly due to their lack of
a charge, neutrons most
commonly are indirectly
ionizing, in that they are
absorbed into a stable atom,
thereby making it unstable and
more likely to emit off ionizing
radiation of another type.
★ neutrons are, in fact, the only
type of radiation that is able to
turn other materials radioactive.
★ thus, a more severe hazard of
neutron radiation, is
neutron activation
- the ability of neutron
radiation to induce
radioactivity in most
substances it
encounters, including
bodily tissues.
★ it is also a problem in nuclear
fission and nuclear fusion
installations as it gradually
renders the equipment
radioactive such that eventually
it must be replaced and
disposed of as low-level
radioactive waste.
➔ gamma radiation does not
consist of any particles, instead
consisting of a photon of energy
being emitted from an unstable
nucleus.
➔ having no mass or charge,
gamma radiation can travel
much farther through air than
alpha or beta, losing (on
average) half its energy for
every 500 feet.
 ★ the extremely high energy of
gamma rays allows them to
penetrate just about anything.
they even pass through bones
and teeth. this makes gamma
rays very dangerous. they can
destroy living cells, produce
gene mutations, and cause
cancer.
X-RAY
➔ x-rays are similar to gamma
radiation, with the primary
difference being that they
originate from the electron
cloud.
➔ this is generally caused by
energy changes in an electron,
such as moving from a higher
energy level to a lower one,
causing the excess energy to
be released.
of the body. this is the reason
why frequent exposure to
X-rays should be avoided. too
much exposure to X-rays can
damage body tissues and can
cause cancer.
➔ while X-rays are linked to a
slightly increased risk of cancer,
there is an extremely low risk of
short-term side effects.
➔ exposure to high radiation
levels can have a range of
effects, such as vomiting,
bleeding, fainting, hair loss, and
the loss of skin and hair.

★ x-rays can cause mutations in

our DNA and, therefore, might
lead to cancer later in life.
★ for this reason, X-rays are
classified as a carcinogen by
both the World Health
Organization (WHO) and the
United States government.

➔ all X-rays are dangerous

because they can damage
healthy living cells