Nature of light Definition and 59 Threads

How was it discovered that electromagnetic radiation is electromagnetic? -- Jeff, in Minneapolis

I'm a high school teacher. In the curriculum, students are required to explain that polarization of light shows that light is a transverse wave. My answer: In order to explain polarization, we have to consider the electric field vibration direction. For example, on a wave that propagates...

First question: Within experimental error all measurements of neutrino and light speed in vacuum are consistent with c, but one way speed measurement of light is well proscribed, so is a one way speed measurement of neutrinos also proscribed? I have more questions, but maybe just clarify this...

I am a bit confused about my conceptual understanding of "light". As always I warn that I have only the simplest naive understanding of physics. In thinking about vision, especially color vision, I understand that color as such is not a real property of the external world. Nor for that matter...

Can anyone explain the behavior of light I came across as I sat in my lounge this evening having a nice cup of Mocha . Hint ( I am sitting in a room with some led ceiling lights on) can you: 1.Guess how many Led lights I have on 2.Explain the appearance of light which is looking like a typical...

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/06/160613144700.htm Harnessing the shared wave nature of light and matter, researchers have used light to explore some of the most intriguing questions in the quantum mechanics of materials. Just for discussion..

I was recently taught in school about the propagation of light as a combination of changing electric and magnetic fields. I had read somewhere that a magnetic field was basically an electric field in a moving frame of reference. So,I wanted to know if in some frame the propagation of light could...

Homework Statement A student enters Best Buy prepared to buy a pair of speakers. Before he does so, he conducts an experiment with them. He places the speakers4.0 m apart and connects a signal generator to both speakers that produces a single and consistent tone. (constant wavelength and...

why light shows both particle and wave nature?

As a writer, light is as crucial as it is to physicists. But I'm struggling with some conceptual understanding surrounding light. If you could supply any answers to this science layman I would be very grateful. 1) Without light there is no way of observing and measuring. So light is both itself...

1. Consider a y-polarized electromagnetic wave with vacuum wavelength 600nm that is propagating in glass and then incident on a glass-air interface; use n=1.4 for glass. Take the interface surface to be the y-z plane, and the plane of incidence to be the x-z plane. Consider 2 incident angles...

Hi I am having a rough time with this questoin . Homework Statement Question: A student enters Best Buy prepared to buy a pair of speakers. Before he does so, he conducts an experiment with them. He places the speakers 4.0 m apart and connects a signal generator to both speakers that produces...

It is given in my book that the phenomenon of black body radiation can be used to prove the particle nature of light. They have also mentioned that the wavelength-intensity relationship "cannot be explained satisfactorily on the basis of wave theory of light." But why? Thanx in advance...

What is the origin of light the color in the following objects and does the color of these objects involves absorption, reflection, and/or transmission of light: a beam of blue light a white sheet of paper a red shirt a black shoe a transparent yellow solution My guesses in order: not...

In classical mechanics, light is modeled as oscillating electric and magnetic fields, where one continuously induces the other, giving it the speed of light. Then in the 20th century, we discover special relativity which shows that magnetic fields are just electric fields created by length...

Hello everyone! This is my first post as a member to this forum and as such will start out with a question that hopefully more brilliant minds than mine can help me with. I am an amateur physicist and simply enjoy pondering theories in regards to many topics in the field. Today I was thinking...

hello everyone i want to ask that what are the theories that proposes the wave nature of light and also those which proves the particle nature of light? list all the theories please ! P.S i don't want a complete description about those theories. thank you

Two in-phase sources of waves are separated by a distance of 4.00 m. These sources produce identical waves that have a wavelength of 5.00 m. On the line between them, there are two places at which the same type of interference occurs. Where are the places located? I already know the...

Would the following explanations suffice to explain why the photoelectric effect shows the particulate nature of light? 1) There is instantaneous emission of photoelectrons when the energy of the photon is greater than the work function of the material. 2) There is no emission of...

Homework Statement Monochromatic light falls on two very narrow slits 0.046 mm apart. Successive fringes on a screen 5.30 m away are 7.0 cm apart near the center of the pattern. Determine the wavelength of the light to two significant figures. Homework Equations x2 ≈ Lθ2 = L (2λ) / d...

In the documentary the Fabric of the Cosmos Leonard Susskind remarks how confused he is that a photon could be both a wave and a particle, he says a rock is a rock, and a wave is a wave (a picture of an ocean wave crashing). How could a rock be a wave? To me the answer is obvious, a wave is...

why is light called an electromagnetic wave??what does it have to do with electricity and magnetism?

Homework Statement Light propagates as waves, but exchanges energy as particles Homework Equations I don't understand the second part, i.e., light exchanges energy as particle. I need the help of members in this regard The Attempt at a Solution

There have been a number of very interesting posts lately around the nature of light. So I devised a simple thought experiment to try and understand it a bit more. Say John and I are next to each other in rocket ships, at rest wrt to Jane, who is 1 light minute away in her rocket ship. All...

I am trying to learn about high-powered lasers. i am wondering what effects the actual power of the laser (the part that makes it burn). is it wave-length or frequency. Is gamma rays more destructive then visable light, ect. Any help would be greatly appreciated

Hello, I could give many arguments supporting the electromagnetic nature of light. The whole net of modern physics can be used for that, specially atomic physics. However, I wonder what could be the best evidences like: - the oldest - the simplest - the most convincing - the...

My question stems from the visual perception of color. First I'd like to clarify what we're seeing. When we see that a material is a certain color does this mean that it's constitute atoms are continuously absorbing certain wave lengths/energy levels of light and blocking out/bouncing the left...

Imagine you have a high-speed camera with a capability to record almost near infinite frames per second. Would you be in principle able to record progression of light (I know that light itself is invisible so at least its reflected progression let's say off a room's walls after a light bulb has...

I'm in my physics course right now and recently became interested in mineral deposits and my teacher told me to look into how geologists use the wave nature of light to find mineral deposists.. I am not sure if I am just really confused about the subject or if I just can't find anything but...

Homework Statement Which of the following phenmena can be explained on the basis of the particle nature of light a. hydrogen spectrum b. spectrum by a prism. c. photoelectric effect d. x- rays2. The attempt at a solution i know that that the photoelectric effect is a proof that light exists as...

Homework Statement Q: An electromagnetic radiation has a frequency of 5.00 x 10^14 Hz. a) Calculate its wavelength in a vacuum, in meters and nanometers. b) Calculate its wavelength in water. c) Is this radiation visible? If so, what is its colour? d) What is the index of refraction of a...

Homework Statement The particle nature of light is best illustrated by which of the following? 1) The scattering of alpha particles from gold foil. 2) The fact that hot objects emit electromagnetic radiation. 3) The diffraction pattern observed when a beam of electrons is scattered by a...

Homework Statement "Explain the statement that one's eyes could not detect the faint star-light if light were not particle like" Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution What comes to my mind is that when light from outside enters the atmosphere,it gets refracted...referred to...

two closely spaced slits are cut into a piece of cardboard. A green light is used to illuminate the slits. a) what would be observed on a screen placed L, meters behind the cardboard? does the observation you described in a) support the wave theory or the particle theory of light? justify your...

1. Homework Statement A single slit is illuminated with a helium-neon laser whose wavelength is 633 nm. If the slit width is 2.2 x 10 e-5 m, calculate the position of the third maximum in degrees 2. Homework Equations Sin Theta(m) = (m + 0.5) Lambda/w 3. The Attempt at a Solution...

Homework Statement The sun's average surface temperature is 6000K. An incandescent light has a temperature of 2500K, and a flouresent light can be considered to have an average temperature of 3500K. Why do neither of these artificial sources of light provide proper light when exposing a...

can someone explain me why single-slit diffraction occurs in terms of the electromagnetic interpretaition of light

Hi and thank you for viewing this post. I'll begin with the question from the textbook; Q: An electromagnetic radiation has a frequency of 5.00 x 10^14 Hz. a) Calculate its wavelength in a vacuum, in meters and nanometers. b) Calculate its wavelength in water. c) Is this radiation visible? If...

Ok, the following problem I've tried several times to solve, although I suspect that somewhere along the line I'm just approaching what appears to be a simple problem in the wrong way: ------------------------------- A two-point source operates at a frequency of 1.0 Hz to produce an...

I have a lot of quesitons relating to Photons and the Wave/Particle Nature of light. Answers to anyone of my questions would be appreciated! =] Thanks in advance. -Can you define photons as particles of EM radiation? or "wave bundles of EM radiation?" Are photons "matter waves," wave...

Homework Statement Two different single slits are used in an experiment involving one source of monochromatic light. With slit 1 in place, the first dark fringe is observed at an angle of 45 degrees. With slit 2, the first dark fringe is observed at an angle of 55 degrees. a)Which slit...

Homework Statement A single slit is illuminated with a helium-neon laser whose wavelength is 633 nm. If the slit width is 2.2 x 10 e-5 m, calculate the position of the third maximum in degrees Homework Equations Sin Theta(m) = (m + 0.5) Lambda/w The Attempt at a Solution Sin...

a) A light with a wavelength of 500 nm illuminates two narrow slits that are 0.10 mm apart. If the viewing screen is 1.20 m from the slits calculate the distance between each maximum. b)how far would the fourth maximum be from the central maximum? a) Given: lambda = 500 x 10e-9 m...

:confused: why can't wave nature of light explain photoelectric effect?

HI; Could someone please help me with this question: Calculate the minimum thickness needed for an antireflective coating (n=1.35) applied to a glass lens in order to eliminate blue (458 nm) reflections for light at normal incidence? How would I go about this question? Thanks.

In what other examples is the wave nature of light important in society and technology? One example is in DVD drive where different wavelengths can read different layers of the DVD.

Given a wavelength length \alpha, what is the maximum Width (D) of a single slit, which would have no diffraction minima? It seems like a proof problem to me and I am trying to get a head start. should I use D * sin (\theta) = m \alpha ?

This question is related to the wave nature of light from Giancoli: Water waves having parallel crests 2.5cm apart pass through two openings 5cm apart in a board. At a point 2.0m beyond the board, at what angle relative to the "straight-through" direction would there be little or no wave...

This topic may have been covered but I am not sure how to search for it, what phrase would I use? So my apologies if I am going over old ground. I am have great difficulty with light and its nature. Recalling some very basic physics, light behaves as both a particle and a wave. true or...

Hi, i was just wondering if the experts here can fill me in on the current understanding of the issue. My teacher told me something about the particle model can explain diffraction due to photons having a gravitational attraction to the nearest slit?? It would be good if someone could make me...