Optics Lab

Experiment 1: Diffraction Grating

Date: 25 January 2021 Name: Divyacharaneeswar R P

ddddddd. d Roll No : 170260018

Aim:

1. To determine the number of lines per millimetre of the grating using the green line of the mercury
spectrum.
2. To calculate the wavelength of the other prominent lines of mercury by normal incidence method.

Apparatus

Spectrometer, diffraction grating element and mercury vapor lamp.

Theory:

When a wave train strikes an obstacle, the light ray will bend at the corners and edges of it, which
causes the spreading of light waves into the geometrical shadow of the obstacle. This phenomenon is
termed as diffraction.

Single slit diffraction:

When waves pass through a gap, which is about as wide as the wavelength they spread out into the
region beyond the gap. Huygens considered each point along a wave front to be the source of a
secondary disturbance that forms a semi-circular wavelet. Diffraction is due to the superposition of
such secondary wavelets. The secondary wavelets spread out and overlap each other interfering with
each other to form a pattern of maximum and minimum intensity. The pattern formed on a screen
consists of a broad central band of light with dark bands on either side. The dark bands are caused when
the light from the top half of the slit destructively interferes with the light from the bottom half.
Consider a slit of width ‘a’. Let at an angle θ, the path difference between the top and bottom of the
slit is a wavelength. This causes destructive interference to occur because the path difference between
the top and the middle of the slit is half of the wavelength. At this angle all the light from the top half
of the slit will get cancelled with the light from the bottom half to produce a dark band.

ΔS = a sinθ -----------( 1)

Intensity minima will occur if this path length difference is an integer number of wavelengths.
a sinθ = nλ ------------(2)
where,
n - order of each minimum
λ - wavelength,
a - distance between the slits
θ - angle at which destructive interference occurs.

"#
!"#! $% &
!
Intensity is given by, I = I0 # ---------------(3)
%!&
$'( !"#*
where ! = is the total phase angle ---------------(4)
+

Diffraction grating is an optical component having a periodic structure which can split and diffract light
t several beams travelling in different directions. This depends on the spacing of the grating and the
wavelength of the incident light.
At normal incidence, sinθ = Nnλ ---------------(5)
where,
N - number of lines per unit length of the grating
n -order of the spectrum
θ - diffraction angle.
 Observations:

zero error = 0 zero correction = 0

main scale least count = 0.5° number of Vernier divisions = 10
Vernier scale least count = main scale least count/ number of Vernier divisions
Vernier scale least count(VSLC) = 0.05°
The following equations are used in the calculations:
• Final value = Main Scale Reading(MSR) +[ Vernier scale coincidence(VSC)* VSLC ]
• Difference Reading(2θ) in Vernier I = (360 - Vernier I Reading of right side) + Vernier I Reading
of left side
• Difference Reading(2θ) in Vernier II = Vernier II Reading of left side - Vernier II Reading of left
side

Standardization the grating with the green line of mercury spectrum (Used n=1 for calculations)

Difference
Wavelength Left Right Reading(2θ)
Mean N = sinθ/n λ
λ(nm) Vernier I Vernier II Vernier I Vernier II Ver Ver θ (m-1)
MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final I II (°)
(°) Value (°) Value (°) Value (°) Value (°) (°)
(°) (°) (°) (°)
546.074 19 15 19.75 200 9 200.45 339 17 339.85 159 3 159.15 39.9 41.3 20.3 635327

Wavelength of lines (Used n=1 ,N=635327 for calculations)

Difference
Line color Left Right Reading(2θ)
Mean !
Vernier I Vernier II Vernier I Vernier II Ver Ver II θ sin&
=
MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final MSR VSC Final I (°) (°) nN
(°) Value (°) Value (°) Value (°) Value (°)
(°) (°) (°) (°) (nm)
Yellow 19 23 20.15 199.5 14 200.2 338 13 338.65 158 4 158.2 41.5 42 20.875 560.86

Blue 16.5 14 17.2 196 22 197.1 341. 2 341.6 162 18 162.9 35.6 34.2 17.45 471.998
5
Violet I 15.5 12 16.1 195 3 195.15 343 26 344.3 164 22 165.1 31.8 30.05 15.463 419.65

Violet II 14 6 14.3 194.5 7 194.85 344. 19 345.45 165 18 165.9 28.85 28.95 14.45 392.76
5

Results

The number of lines per millimetre of the grating using the green line of the mercury spectrum is
635327m-1
The wavelength of the other prominent lines of mercury by normal incidence method are
• The wavelength of Yellow = 560.86nm • The wavelength of Violet I= 419.65nm
• The wavelength of Blue= 471.998nm • The wavelength of Violet II= 392.76nm