PHYSICAL SCIENCE

S.Y. ‘23 - ‘24 | SEM 2 Q4 | PS Module 5 WEEK 5: Dual Nature of Light

– SEM 2 Q4 WEEK 5 –

1.0 Dual Nature of Light

● In 1900, Max Plank proposed the

quantum theory of light.
● According to this theory, light is
emitted in discrete packets of
energy called quanta.
● Albert Einstein referred to each
quantum of energy as a photon.
● Experiments show that light has a
dual nature; that is, as a particle and
a wave.
● Ascribing either the wave
characteristics or particle
characteristics depends on which
2.0
property of light is being explained.
● In 1905, the physicist Albert
Einstein developed a new theory
about electromagnetic radiation.
● The theory is often called the wave-
particle theory which explains how
electromagnetic radiation can
behave as both a wave and a
particle.
● Einstein posits that when an
electron returns to a lower energy
level and gives off electromagnetic
energy, the energy is released as a
discrete "packet" of energy.
● We now call such a packet of
energy as a photon which
resembles a particle but moves like
a wave.
● The theory suggests that waves of
photons traveling through space or
matter make up electromagnetic
radiation.
Evidence for the Wave-
Particle Theory
 After Einstein proposed his theory,
evidence was discovered to
support it.
 For example, scientists shone laser
light through two slits in a barrier
made of a material that blocked
light.
 Using a special camera that was
very sensitive to light, they took
photos of the light that passed
through the slits.
 The photos revealed tiny pinpoints
of light passing through the double
slits.
 This seemed to show that light
consists of particles.
 However, if the camera was
exposed to the light for a long time,
the pinpoints accumulated in
bands that resembled interfering

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James Benedict Cerillo
 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
S.Y. ‘23 - ‘24 | SEM 2 Q4 | PS Module 5
waves.
 Therefore, the experiment showed
that light seems to consist of
particles that act like waves.
3.0 Refraction and Reflection
 When a beam of light travels
between two media having
different refractive indices, the
beam undergoes refraction, and
changes direction when it passes
from the first medium into the
second.,
 To determine whether the light
beam is composed of waves or
particles, a model for each can be
devised to explain the
phenomenon (Figure 1).
 According to Huygens' wave
theory, a small portion of each
angled wavefront should impact the
second medium before the rest of
the front reaches the interface.
 This portion will start to move
through the second medium while
the rest of the wave is still
traveling in the first medium, but
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James Benedict Cerillo
WEEK 5: Dual Nature of Light
will move more slowly due to the
higher refractive index of the
second medium.
 Because the wavefront is now
traveling at two different speeds, it
will bend into the second medium,
thus changing the angle of
propagation.
 In contrast, particle theory has a
rather difficult time explaining why
particles of light should change
direction when they pass from one
medium into another.
 Proponents of the theory suggest
that a special force, directed
perpendicular to the interface, acts
to change the speed of the
particles as they enter the second
medium.
 The exact nature of this force was
left to speculation, and no
evidence has ever been collected
to prove the theory.
 Refraction is a change in the
direction of a light wave caused by
a change in its speed as the light
wave passes at an angle from one
medium to the next.
 In the ray diagram example, a light
ray is incident on the surface of
water.
 Some of the light is reflected and
some of the light slows down as it
enters the water and is refracted.
 Another excellent comparison of
the two theories involves the
differences that occur when light is
reflected from a smooth, specular
surface, such as a mirror.
 Wave theory speculates that a light
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 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
S.Y. ‘23 - ‘24 | SEM 2 Q4 | PS Module 5
source emits light waves that
spread in all directions.
 Upon impacting a mirror, the
waves are reflected according to
the arrival angles, but with each
wave turned back to front to
produce a reversed image.
 The shape of arriving waves is
strongly dependent upon how far
the light source is from the mirror.
 Light originating from a close
source still maintains a spherical,
highly curved wavefront, while light
emitted from a distance source will
spread more and impact the mirror
with wavefronts that are almost
planar.
 The case for a particle nature for
light is far stronger with regards to
the reflection phenomenon than it
is for refraction.
 Light emitted by a source, whether
near or far, arrives at the mirror
surface as a stream of particles,
which bounce away or are
reflected from the smooth surface.
 Because the particles are very tiny,
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a huge number are involved in a
propagating light beam, where they
travel side by side very close
together.
 Upon impacting the mirror, the
particles bounce from different
points, so their order in the light
beam is reversed upon reflection
to produce a reversed image.
 Both the particle and wave theories
adequately explain reflection from
a smooth surface. However, the
particle theory also suggests that if
the surface is very rough, the
particles bounce away at a variety
of angles, scattering the light.
 This theory fits very closely to
experimental observation.
 The laws of reflection of light state:
("The angle of incidence (measured
from the normal line) is equal to the
angle of reflection (also measured
from the normal line.")
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 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
S.Y. ‘23 - ‘24 | SEM 2 Q4 | PS Module 5
 The incident ray, the normal line at
the point of incidence and the
reflected ray, all lie in the same
plane.
 The figure above shows the
reflection of a light ray off a
mirrored surface. The incoming or
incident ray strikes the mirror at
the point of incidence.
 The normal line is an dimaginary
line drawn perpendicular to the
reflecting surface at the point of
incidence.
 The angle of incidence (Øi) is the
angle between the normal line and
the incident ray.
 The angle of reflection (Ør) is the
angle between the normal line and
the reflected ray and is equal to the
angle of incidence.
@JAMES IMPORTANT NOTES
● WAVE-PARTICLE DUALITY
THEORY OF LIGHT states that light
acts as a wave when it moves
through space and as a particle
when it interacts with matter.
● ELECTROMAGENTIC WAVE is an
energy-carrying wave emitted by a
vibrating charge (often electrons)
that is composed of oscillating
electric and magnetic fields that
regenerate one another.
● HUYGEN‟S PRINCIPLE states that
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James Benedict Cerillo
WEEK 5: Dual Nature of Light
if the position of a wave front at
one instant is known, then the
position of the front at a later time
can be constructed by imagining
the front as a source of secondary
wavelets. Huygens‟s principle can
be used to derive the laws of
reflection and refraction.
● INDEX OF REFRACTION OF A
MATERIAL is the ratio of the speed
of light in vacuum to the speed in
the material. If is the wavelength in
vacuum, the same wave has a
shorter wavelength in a medium with
index of refraction n.
● LAW OF REFLECTION states that
the angle of reflection equals the
angle of incidence.
● LAW OF REFRACTION relates the
angles of incidence and refraction
to the indexes of refraction of the
materials.
● LIGHT is an electromagnetic wave.
When emitted or absorbed, it also
shows particle properties. It is
emitted by accelerated electric
charges.
● PLANE OF INCIDENT is a single
plane where all incident, reflected,
and refracted rays and the normal lie.
● REFLECTION is the return of light
rays from a surface in such a way
that the angle at which a given ray is
returned is equal to the angle at
which it strikes the surface. When
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 PHYSICAL SCIENCE
S.Y. ‘23 - ‘24 | SEM 2 Q4 | PS Module 5 WEEK 5: Dual Nature of Light

the reflecting surface is irregular,

the light is returned in irregular
directions; this is diffuse reflection.
In general, the bouncing back of a
particle or wave that strikes the
boundary between two media
● REFRACTION is the bending of an
oblique ray of light when it passes
from one transparent medium to
another. This is caused by a
difference in the speed of light in the
transparent media. In general, the
change in direction of a wave as it
crosses the boundary between two
media in which the wave travels at
different speeds.
● WAVEFRONT is a surface of
constant phase; wave fronts move
with a speed equal to the
propagation speed of the wave.

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James Benedict Cerillo