Lecture Outline

Chapter 24

College Physics, 7th Edition

Wilson / Buffa / Lou

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 Chapter 24
Physical Optics: The Wave
Nature of Light

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24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
• Light can behave as
particles or as waves…
we call this….
• In 1801, Thomas Young
used interference to
demonstrate the wave
nature of light.
• Called the Young’s
Double Slit Experiment
• Coherent vs. incoherent
sources

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 24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment

Passing a beam of
light through a pair
of slits produces
two beams that are
in phase, and can
interfere with each
other.
The diagram to the
left represents
Young’s double
slit experiment.
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 24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment

Whether the interference is constructive or

destructive depends on the path length
difference from the slits to the screen.

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 24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
To calculate the path length the waves have
traveled:

Condition for constructive interference

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 24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
The condition for the location of an interference
maximum is then (for constructive interference)

Here, n is called the order of the maximum.

The lateral distance between maxima and
central maximum for small angles is,

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 24.1 Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
• In a lab experiment, monochromatic light
passes through 2 narrow slits that are 0.05
mm apart. The interference pattern is
observed on a white wall 1.0 m from the
slits, and the second order maximum is at
an angle of 1.5 degrees.
– a) If the slit separation decreases, the
second order maximum will be seen at
an angle of greater than 1.5, at 1.5, or
less than 1.5
– b) What is the wavelength of light and
what is the distance between second
order and third order maxima?
– c) If d = 0.040 mm, what is the angle for
the second order? 8
 Solution
b)
a) If the slit separation decreases, the
second order maximum will be seen at an
angle of greater than 1.5, at 1.5, or less
than 1.5

Solution
dsinθ = nλ
Sinθ = nλ/d, so when d decreases, sin θ will
increase, which implies that θ will increase
too.

c)
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 24.3 Diffraction
• We like to think that light moves in straight
line paths (rays). If this were true, we
wouldn’t be able to see interference.
• But WE DO!!! So…this means light must
deviate from straight line paths!

• As waves pass through slits, they spread

out. This spreading of light is called
diffraction.

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 24.3 Diffraction

– When the width of an opening is much larger

than the wavelength of the wave there will be
little diffraction.
– When the wavelength and width are around
the same size (as the width of the slit
becomes smaller), there will be noticeable
diffraction.

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 24.3 Diffraction
Diffraction patterns are created when waves
encounter obstacles or openings, or are very
close to the edges of objects.

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 24.3 Diffraction
Again, path length differences from different
parts of the object or opening lead to
interference.
The condition for diffraction minima is:

The diffraction pattern will be wider for

longer wavelengths and narrower slits.
The central maximum is twice as wide as
the side maxima; its width is:

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 24.3 Diffraction
read page 822 of Buffa Lou book
• When you drive through a city or mountainous
areas, the quality of your radio reception varies
sharply from place to place, with stations seeming to
fade out and reappear. Could diffraction be a cause
of this phenomenon? Which of the following
frequency bands would you expect to be least
affected:
– Weather (162 MHz)
– FM (88 – 108 MHz)
– AM (525 – 1610 kHz)

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 24.3 Diffraction

• Monochromatic light passes through a slit

whose width is 0.05 mm.
• a) The resulting diffraction pattern is
generally wider for longer wavelengths, wider
for shorter wavelengths, or the same width
for all wavelengths?
• b) At what angle will the third order minimum
be seen and what is the width of the central
maximum on a screen located 1.0 m from the
slit, for a wavelength of 400 nm and 550 nm.
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 Solution
(a)The general size of the diffraction pattern can be characterized by the
position and width of a particular maximum or minimum. From the Eq.

• it can be seen that for a given width w and order number m, the position of a
minimum is directly proportional to the wavelength . Therefore, a longer
wavelength will correspond to a greater sin θ or a greater θ, and the answer is
(1).

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(b)

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 24.3 Diffraction

A diffraction
grating is a series
of small slits with
uniform spacing.
The maxima
become quite
narrow as the
number of slits
increase. The
minima become
wider.
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 24.3 Diffraction
Diffraction gratings combine multiple-slit
interference with single-slit diffraction,
yielding the observed pattern.

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 24.3 Diffraction
The maxima of a diffraction grating are the
same as for a double slit:

If the light falling on a diffraction grating is

not monochromatic, a spectrum will be
seen, as different wavelengths will have
peaks at different places. A familiar example
of a (reflection) diffraction grating is a CD.
The grating constant be found with…
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 24.3 Diffraction

• A particular diffraction grating produces an

n = 2 spectral order at an angle of 32 degrees
for light with a wavelength of 500 nm.
– a) How many lines per centimeter does the
grating have?
– b) At what angle can the n = 3 spectral order be
seen?
– c) What is the highest order maximum that can be
observed?

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 24.4 Polarization

Polarization refers to
the orientation of the
electric and magnetic
fields in an
electromagnetic wave.

This only happens in

transverse waves.

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 24.4 Polarization

In unpolarized light, the electric fields have

random directions.
In partially polarized light, the electric fields are
clustered around a preferred orientation.
In fully polarized light, the electric fields are all
in the same direction.

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