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http://www.colorado.edu/physics/phys1230/phys1230_fa12/
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Dr. Ellen Keister
Map to Help Room (G2B90)
Lecture room
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Chapter 1
Light rays Light waves (EM waves)
Laser beam Speed of light
Wavelength and
Ray propagation
frequency
Waves Amplitude
Rope waves
Wave medium The Electromagnetic
Wave propagation Spectrum
Other waves Visible light
Wave properties Radio waves
Electromagnetic waves Microwaves
Xrays
Light Rays
Rays are a convenient descriptive tool
Indicate the direction the light is traveling
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Light Rays
We only see light when a ray enters our eye
Light Rays: Bending
Light rays bend when they pass from one material
to another
This is the principle behind lenses (chapter 3)
Air
Glass or
water
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Light Rays: Reflection
Specular reflection Diffuse reflection
Mirror
Waves
A wave is a propagating disturbance or oscillation
The medium does not move very far, but the
wave disturbance does
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Rope Waves
Disturbance has some speed, but rope segments
do NOT move in direction of wave
Rope segments move up and down, not in the
same direction as the disturbance moves
Rays, Waves and Wavefronts
The wavefront is defined as a curve or surface
perpendicular (at a 90o angle) to all the rays
OR, rays are drawn at right angles to the
wavefront
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Wavefront Examples
Lets draw wavefronts for these rays:
What type of light source might produce these rays?
A laser Two light bulbs
Wave Properties
l Periodic wave
l Periodic wave
Aperiodic wave
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Periodic Wave Properties (Vocabulary)
Wavelength ()
Amplitude
Ray: Direction of wave motion
Periodic Wave Properties (Vocabulary)
Ray: Direction of wave motion
Frequency (f) is the number of oscillations per
second at a fixed point in space
Period (T) is the inverse of frequency, is the time it
takes for one wavelength to pass a fixed point
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Clicker Question: Wavelength
What is the wavelength
of the red wave?
A) 1m
B) 2m
C) 3m
meters
Clicker Question: Period
What is the period of
the red wave?
A) 2 milliseconds
B) 2 seconds
C) 2 minutes
meters
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Periodic Wave Properties: Speed
For periodic waves, we can identify a speed (v)
speed = distance/time
speed = wavelength/period
speed = Wavelength x frequency
v = f
Light Waves: Properties
What do these properties mean for light waves?
The amplitude of a light wave is related to its
brightness
Light waves are special. They have a constant
speed over all colors, over billions of years, and
over all brightness.
We use the letter c to denote the
speed of light in a vacuum
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Light Waves: Properties
Recall:
v = f
for light waves we use
c = f
and c never changes.
Thus the wavelength and the frequency of light
waves have a fixed relationship:
= c/f or f = c/
Wavelength and Color
The wavelength or frequency of light waves is
related to the colors we perceive when the waves
enter our eyes
The wavelengths of light that our eyes and brain
see are in the 400-700 nanometer (nm) range.
One nanometer is 10-9 meters
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Clicker Question: Wavelengths
The wavelength of green 1 centimeter = 1x10-2 m
light is around 500 nm.
500 nanometers = 5x10-7 m
How many wavelengths of
green light fit into one 1x102 m
centimeter (0.4 inches, 5x107 m
about a fingertip)?
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a) 20 thousand x 105
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b) 50 thousand
c) Two million 0.2 x 105=2 x 104
d) Two billion =20 thousand
e) 5 billion
Wavelength and Color
Light with wavelength of 650 nm
appears red when it enters a
viewers eye
Light with wavelength of 520 nm
appears green when it enters a
viewers eye
Light with wavelength of 470 nm
appears blue when it enters a
viewers eye
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Clicker questions
Which of the light waves has
the longest wavelength?
Which of the light waves is a)
brightest?
Which of the light waves has
the highest speed in empty b)
space?
a) b) c)
d) They all have the same
speed c)
Clicker question
What does the
viewer see when the
wave at left with
wavelength 650 nm
goes by him?
a) Red
b) Blue
c) Green
d) White
e) Nothing
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What happens when two or more waves
with different wavelengths reach your eye?
Light with both wavelengths 650
nm and 520 nm appears yellow
when it enters a viewers eye
Light with only wavelength 580
nm also appears yellow when it
enters a viewers eye
What is white light?
Light which is a mixture of 650, 520 and 470 nm wavelengths
(and possibly more wavelengths) appears white when it
reaches your eye
No single wavelength (mono-chromatic) wave appears white
when it reaches your eye!
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White Light through a Prism
400 nm
700 nm
A prism spreads out the over- lapping wavelengths
in white light into different spatial locations where
they can be seen as colors.
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