WHAT IS LIGHT

ADITYA KUMAR
2021CEB1005
Why are we able to see?
Answer: Because there is light.

And…what is light?
Answer: Light is a wave.

So…what is a wave?
What is wave?
Answer: A wave is a disturbance that
carries energy from place to place.
A wave does NOT carry matter with it! It
just moves the matter as it goes through
it.
Water Waves
STRING WAVES
 Electric Field
Electric field is said to exist in the region of
space around a charged object: the source
charge.
Concept of test charge:
Small and positive
Does not affect charge distribution
Electric field:

 F
E
q0
Existence of an electric field is a
property of its source;
Presence of test charge is not necessary
for the field to exist;
Electric current 
 

The electrical current in the basic term is the flow of electric 

charge. The common electric charge carriers are electrons, but they
can also be ions as in the case of chemical batteries
 Magnetic Field
An area around a magnet or materials that behave like a
magnet, where there is a force that will attract some metals
towards it
Points which helps to understand what is light

1. Changing in Magnetic field produces a Electric field.

Example – When we move magnet towards a coil than electric
current flow in coil. 
2. Changing in electric field produces a magnetic field.
Example – Current carrying wire.

3. An Accelerating and Oscillating charged particle produces

Electromagnetic wave.
Making Electromagnetic Waves

 When an electric charge vibrates,

the electric field around it
changes creating a changing
magnetic field.
 The magnetic and electric fields
create each other again and
again.
 ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES

Definition: Electromagnetic waves or EM
waves are waves that are created as a result of
vibrations between an electric field and a
magnetic field. In other words, EM waves are
composed of oscillating magnetic and electric
fields.
Making Electromagnetic Waves
 An EM wave travels in all
directions. The figure only shows
a wave traveling in one direction.
 The electric and magnetic fields
vibrate at right angles to the
direction the wave travels so it is a
transverse wave.
What is the speed of EM waves?

 All EM waves travel 300,000 Material Speed

km/sec in space. (speed of light- (km/s)
nature’s limit!) Vacuum 300,000
 EM waves usually travel slowest Air <300,000
in solids and fastest in gases.
Water 226,000
Glass 200,000
Diamond 124,000
Charge particle – Produces Electric field

Moving charge particle - Produces Magnetic field

Accelerating charged particle - EM wave

Superposition of Waves
The resultant displacement of a number of waves in a
medium at a particular point is the vector sum of the
individual displacements produced by each of the waves
at that point.
Superposition of Waves
Interference of Waves
Wave interference is the phenomenon that occurs when two
waves meet while traveling along the same medium. The
interference of waves causes the medium to take on a shape that
results from the net effect of the two individual waves upon the
particles of the medium.
Diffraction of Light

Slit
Light

Screen
Diffraction of Light

Diffraction is defined as the bending of light around

corners such that it spreads out and illuminates the
areas where a shadow is normally expected.
Points which helps to understand diffraction of light

1. Wavefront and Huygens principle

A Wavefront is defined as a surface over which the phase of the

wave is constant.

Every point on a wavefront is in itself the source of spherical

wavelets which spread out in the forward direction at the speed of
light. The sum of these spherical wavelets forms the wavefront.
2. Interference of circular waves
Activity……………

Make a small square hole with help of black sheet.