EXPERIMENT NO.

6
MEASUREMENT OF REFRACTIVE INDEX
PRELAB EXERCISES

NAME: JAVIER, JESSE LOUISE L. DATE: MAY 12, 2020

PROFESSOR: ENGR. ROLLY UMANDAL SCORE: _____________

1. Discuss the different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum and the quantum change of these
regions.
There are 7 regions in the electromagnetic spectrum and they are gamma rays, x-rays,
ultraviolet, visible light, infrared, microwaves and radio waves. All types of electromagnetic
radiation are transverse waves and they all travel at the same speed in a vacuum.

First, Radio waves it has the longest wavelength ranging from approximately 1mm to
several hundred meters. It is usually used in transmitting data like wireless network, television
and radio. This is a low-energy photons that behave like waves.

Second, Microwaves are a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging

from about one meter to one millimeter; with frequencies between 300 MHz (1 m) and 300 GHz
(1 mm). Microwaves have a range of applications, including communications, radar and, perhaps
best known by most people, cooking.

Third, Infrared lies between the visible and microwave portions of the electromagnetic
spectrum. It has a wavelength ranging from 740 nm to 10,000 nm. It is divided into three
categories Near Infrared (NIR) ranging from 0.7 – 1.3µm, shortwave infrared (SWIR) that is
ranging from 1.3 – 3 µm, and lastly is far or thermal infrared from 3 - 100 µm. One of the most
common uses of infrared radiation is in heat-sensitive thermal imaging cameras.

Fourth, Visible lights it has a wave length ranging from 400 nm to 750 nm. It is the only
region that is visible by the humans naked eyes. The different frequencies of visible light are
experienced by people as the colors of the rainbow. The frequencies move from the lower
wavelengths, detected as reds, up to the higher visible wavelengths, detected as violet hues. The
most noticeable natural source of visible light is, of course, the sun. Objects are perceived as
different colors based on which wavelengths of light an object absorbs and which it reflects.

Fifth, Ultraviolet waves has a wavelengths ranging from 1 nm to 380 nm. It has shorter
wavelengths than visible light. UV waves are the cause of sunburn and can cause cancer in living
organisms. High-temperature processes emit UV rays; these can be detected throughout the
universe from every star in the sky. The UV portion of the spectrum is subdivided into UV-A,
UV-B, and UV-C.

Sixth, X-rays it has a wavelength ranging from 0.03 nm to 3 nm. It is a penetrating

radiation, X-rays are emitted by sources producing very high temperatures like the sun's corona,
which is much hotter than the surface of the sun. Natural sources of x-rays include enormously
energetic cosmic phenomena such as pulsars, supernovae and black holes. X-rays are commonly
used in imaging technology to view bone structures within the body.

Lastly, Gamma rays it has the shortest wavelength with less than 0.01nm however it has
the highest-frequency among EM waves, and are emitted by only the most energetic cosmic
objects such pulsars, neutron stars, supernova and black holes. Terrestrial sources include
lightning, nuclear explosions and radioactive decay. Gamma wave wavelengths are measured on
the subatomic level and can actually pass through the empty space within an atom. Gamma rays
can destroy living cells; fortunately, the Earth's atmosphere absorbs any gamma rays that reach
the planet.