Lecture Powerpoints: Physics: Principles With Applications, 7 Edition

Lecture PowerPoints
Chapter 24
Physics: Principles with
Applications, 7th edition
Giancoli
© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

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Chapter 24
The Wave Nature of Light

Contents of Chapter 24
• Waves Versus Particles; Huygens’ Principle and

Diffraction
• Huygens’ Principle and the Law of Refraction
• Interference—Young’s Double-Slit Experiment
• The Visible Spectrum and Dispersion
• Diffraction by a Single Slit or Disk
• Diffraction Grating

Contents of Chapter 24
• The Spectrometer and Spectroscopy

• Interference in Thin Films
• Michelson Interferometer
• Polarization
• Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD)
• Scattering of Light by the Atmosphere

24-1 Waves Versus Particles; Huygens’
Principle and Diffraction
Huygens’ principle: Every

point on a wave front acts
as a point source; the
wavefront as it develops is
tangent to their envelope

24-1 Waves Versus Particles; Huygens’
Principle and Diffraction
Huygens’ principle is consistent with diffraction:

24-2 Huygens’ Principle and
the Law of Refraction

Huygens’ principle can also explain the law of

refraction.
As the wavelets propagate from each point, they
propagate more slowly in the medium of higher index of
refraction.
This leads to a bend in the wavefront and therefore in the
ray.

The frequency of the light does not change, but the

wavelength does as it travels into a new medium.
(24-1)

Highway mirages are due to a gradually changing index

of refraction in heated air.

24-3 Interference—Young’s
Double-Slit Experiment
If light is a wave, interference effects will be seen, where

one part of wavefront can interact with another part.
One way to study this is to do a double-slit experiment:

If light is a wave,
there should be an
interference
pattern.

The interference occurs because each point on the screen

is not the same distance from both slits. Depending on
the path length difference, the wave can interfere
constructively (bright spot) or destructively (dark spot).

We can use geometry to find the conditions for

constructive and destructive interference:
(24-2a)
(24-2b)

Between the maxima and the minima, the amplitude

varies smoothly.

Since the position of the maxima (except the central one)

depends on wavelength, the first- and higher-order
fringes contain a spectrum of colors.

24-4 The Visible Spectrum and Dispersion
Wavelengths of visible light: 400 nm to 750 nm

Shorter wavelengths are ultraviolet; longer are infrared

The index of refraction of a material varies somewhat

with the wavelength of the light.

This variation in refractive index is why a prism will

split visible light into a rainbow of colors.

Atmospheric rainbows are created by dispersion in tiny

drops of water.

24-5 Diffraction by a Single Slit or Disk
Light will also diffract around a single slit or obstacle.

The resulting pattern of light and dark stripes is called a

diffraction pattern.
This pattern arises because different points along a slit
create wavelets that interfere with each other just as a
double slit would.

The minima of the single-slit diffraction pattern occur

when
(24-3b)

24-6 Diffraction Grating
A diffraction grating consists of a large number of

equally spaced narrow slits or lines. A transmission
grating has slits, while a reflection grating has lines that
reflect light.
The more lines or slits there are, the narrower the peaks.

24-6 Diffraction Grating
The maxima of the diffraction pattern are defined by

(24-4)

24-7 The Spectrometer and Spectroscopy
A spectrometer makes accurate measurements of

wavelengths using a diffraction grating or prism.

24-7 The Spectrometer and Spectroscopy
The wavelength can be determined to high accuracy by

measuring the angle at which the light is diffracted.
Atoms and molecules can be identified when they are in

a thin gas through their characteristic emission lines.

24-8 Interference in Thin Films
Another way path lengths can differ, and waves

interfere, is if the travel through different media.
If there is a very thin film of material—a few
wavelengths thick—light will reflect from both the
bottom and the top of the layer, causing interference.
This can be seen in soap bubbles and oil slicks, for
example.

The wavelength of the light will be different in the oil

and the air, and the reflections at points A and B may or
may not involve reflection.

A similar effect takes place when a shallowly curved

piece of glass is placed on a flat one. When viewed from
above, concentric circles appear that are called Newton’s
rings.

One can also create a thin film of air

by creating a wedge-shaped gap
between two pieces of glass.

Problem Solving: Interference

1. Interference occurs when two or more waves arrive
simultaneously at the same point in space.
2. Constructive interference occurs when the waves are
in phase.
3. Destructive interference occurs when the waves are
out of phase.
4. An extra half-wavelength shift occurs when light
reflects from a medium with higher refractive index.
24-9 Michelson Interferometer
The Michelson interferometer is centered around a beam

splitter, which transmits about half the light hitting it and
reflects the rest. It can be a very sensitive measure of
length.

24-10 Polarization
Light is polarized when its electric fields oscillate in a

single plane, rather than in any direction perpendicular
to the direction of propagation.

24-10 Polarization
Polarized light will not be transmitted through a

polarized film whose axis is perpendicular to the
polarization direction.

24-10 Polarization
When light passes through a polarizer, only the

component parallel to the polarization axis is
transmitted. If the incoming light is plane-polarized, the
outgoing intensity is:
(24-5)

24-10 Polarization
This means that if initially unpolarized light passes

through crossed polarizers, no light will get through the
second one.

24-10 Polarization
Light is also partially polarized after reflecting from a

nonmetallic surface. At a special angle, called the
polarizing angle or Brewster’s angle, the polarization is
100%.
(24-6a)

24-11 Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD)
Liquid crystals are unpolarized in the absence of an

external voltage, and will easily transmit light. When an
external voltage is applied, the crystals become polarized
and no longer transmit; they appear dark.

24-11 Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD)
Liquid crystals can be found in many familiar

applications, such as calculators and digital watches.
Color LCD displays are more complicated; each pixel
has three subpixels to provide the different colors. A
source of light is behind the display (unlike calculators
and watches, which use ambient light). The pixels must
be able to make finer adjustments than just on and off to
provide a clear image.

24-12 Scattering of Light by the Atmosphere
Skylight is partially polarized due to scattering from

molecules in the air. The amount of polarization depends
on the angle that your line of sight makes with the sun.

Summary of Chapter 24
• The wave theory of light is strengthened by the

interference and diffraction of light
• Huygens’ principle: every point on a wavefront is a
source of spherical wavelets
• Wavelength of light in a medium with index of
refraction n:
• Young’s double-slit experiment demonstrated

interference
• In the double-slit experiment, constructive interference

occurs when
• and destructive interference when
• Two sources of light are coherent if they have the

same frequency and maintain the same phase
relationship

• Visible spectrum of light ranges from 400 nm to

750 nm (approximately)
• Index of refraction varies with wavelength, leading to
dispersion
• Diffraction grating has many small slits or lines, and
the same condition for constructive interference
• Wavelength can be measured precisely with a
spectroscope

• Light bends around obstacles and openings in its path,

yielding diffraction patterns
• Light passing through a narrow slit will produce a
central bright maximum of width
• Interference can occur between reflections from the

front and back surfaces of a thin film
• Light whose electric fields are all in the same plane is
called plane polarized
• The intensity of plane polarized light is reduced after

it passes through another polarizer:
• Light can also be polarized by reflection; it is

completely polarized when the reflection angle is the
polarization angle:

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Lecture PowerPoints

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

• Waves Versus Particles; Huygens’ Principle and

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

• The Spectrometer and Spectroscopy

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Huygens’ principle: Every

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Huygens’ principle is consistent with diffraction:

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Huygens’ principle can also explain the law of

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The frequency of the light does not change, but the

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Highway mirages are due to a gradually changing index

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

If light is a wave, interference effects will be seen, where

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The interference occurs because each point on the screen

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

We can use geometry to find the conditions for

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Between the maxima and the minima, the amplitude

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Since the position of the maxima (except the central one)

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Wavelengths of visible light: 400 nm to 750 nm

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The index of refraction of a material varies somewhat

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

This variation in refractive index is why a prism will

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Atmospheric rainbows are created by dispersion in tiny

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Light will also diffract around a single slit or obstacle.

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The resulting pattern of light and dark stripes is called a

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The minima of the single-slit diffraction pattern occur

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

A diffraction grating consists of a large number of

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The maxima of the diffraction pattern are defined by

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

A spectrometer makes accurate measurements of

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The wavelength can be determined to high accuracy by

Atoms and molecules can be identified when they are in

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

Another way path lengths can differ, and waves

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

The wavelength of the light will be different in the oil

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

A similar effect takes place when a shallowly curved

© 2014 Pearson Education, Inc.

One can also create a thin film of air