The Electromagnetic Waves
the food.
RADIO WAVES
 Have the longest wavelengths
and the lowest frequencies in
the EM spectrum
 Can be produced by making
electricity oscillate in an aerial,
or antenna, and are used to
transmit sound and picture
information over long distances
MICROWAVES
 Radio waves of very short
wavelength
 Used in satellite
communications
 because they can penetrate the
ionosphere - a layer of the
earth’s atmosphere in which
there is a high concentration of
charged particles
 The property of microwave to
be reflected by small objects is
used in radar ( Radio Detecting
and Ranging)
 Basic principle involves the
transmission of waves at
microwave frequencies and
then detecting its echo after
reflection from a distant object
 Penetrate food without being
heated and agitate the water
molecules within. Causes
molecular friction which
produces heat, thereby cooking
INFRARED
 Waves that lie in the region
beyond the red end of the
visible spectrum
 Too long to be visible to the
naked eye
 Most noticeable when given off
by hot objects, especially when
objects are red hot
 Infrared is used:
– To take pics from satellites
with special films to assess
the vegetation of the earth’s
surface
– In infrared scanners to show
temperature variation of the
body for medical diagnosis
– In remote controllers that
send instructions to
electronic devices
– In infrared telescopes for
seeing in the dark
– In autofocus cameras that
emit infrared pulses to focus
on objects
VISIBLE WAVES
 Known as light waves
 Separated into constituent
colors:
ROYGBIV
 Violet has the shortest
wavelength and red has the
longest
 No sharp boundaries between
colors
ULTRAVIOLET WAVES
 Invisible radiation that lie
beyond the violet end of the
visible spectrum
 Has shorter wavelength than
violet light
 Ultraviolet is used:
– In the production of vitamin D
by the inner layers of the skin
– In sterilizing water in drinking
fountains
– In ultraviolet lamps used by
banks to identify fake bank
notes and to check the
signatures on the passbook
– In paints that contain
fluorescent chemicals that glow
in sunlight
X-RAYS
– Have short wavelengths and
high frequencies and are very
penetrating
– Produced by the rapid
acceleration of electrons in X-
ray machines that collide with
atoms, these atoms then emit X
rays
– X-rays with long wavelengths
– Can penetrate through flesh but
not bone
– Used in X-ray photography to
help the doctor look inside the
body
 X-rays with short wavelengths
– Can penetrate through metal
 Used in industry to inspect
welded joints or faults
 All X-rays are dangerous
because they can damage living
cells and cause cancer
GAMMA RAYS
 High-energy waves produced
from nuclear reactions
 Have shorter wavelengths than
X-rays
 More dangerous than X-rays
because radioactive substances
emit them
 Used in sterilizing medical
instruments
 Concentrated beams can be
used to kill cancer cells