White Light

White light contains all the wavelengths of the

visible spectrum at equal intensity
 Nature of Light
❖ Light is a transverse and electromagnetic wave
❖ Like all electromagnetic waves, light can travel through a vacuum
❖ Transverse nature of light can be demonstrated through polarization

Sources of Light

Incandescence – Emission of light from hot matter (T > 800 K)

Luminescence – Emission of light when excited electrons fall to lower
energy levels
 Properties of Light

1. Light travels very fast (≈ 3 x 108 m/s)

2. Light has a dual nature [waves or particles (photons)]
3. Light travels in straight lines (form shadows when blocked)
4. Light can vary in intensity (varies with distance)
5. Light interacts with matter (change speed and direction)
6. Light is comprised of many colours (dispersion in prism)
7. Light carries energy and information (fiber optics)
Many phenomena in our everyday life depend on the properties
 Refraction
Bending (refraction) of light due to change in
speed of light
Refraction occurs when light travel from one
medium to
another medium
Speed of light is slow
Light refracts towards the normal line
Speed of light is fast
Light refracts away from the normal line
Index of Refraction, n
The index of refraction of a substance is the ratio of the speed in
light in a vacuum to the speed of light in that substance:

n=c/v Medium n
Vacuum 1
n = Index of Refraction Air (STP) 1.00029
c = Speed of light in vacuum Water (20º C) 1.33
v = Speed of light in medium Ethanol 1.36
Glass ~1.5
Note that a large index of Diamond 2.42
refraction corresponds to a
relatively slow light speed in that
medium.
 Snell’s Law
Snell’s law states that a ray of light bends in such a way that the ratio of
the sine of the angle of incidence to the sine of the angle of refraction is
constant.

Mathematically,
i
ni sin i = nr sinr
ni
nr
r
Here ni is the index of refraction in the original medium and nr is the
index in the medium the light enters.  i and r are the angles of
incidence and refraction, respectively.
 Wave Characteristics

Crest = Highest point of the wave

Trough = Lowest point of the wave
Wavelength = Distance from one crest/trough to the next (m)
Wave Height = Height from trough to crest (m)
Wave steepness = ratio of wave height to wavelength
Amplitude = distance from the centre of wave to the bottom of the trough (m)
Wave Period = time for one full wavelength to pass a given point (s)
 Principle of Superposition
When two or more light waves superimpose in the medium then according to superposition
principle the displacement of resultant wave at any point is equal to the algebraic sum of the
displacements due to Individual waves. Amplitude of resultant wave (R) is given by

𝑅 = 𝑦1 ± 𝑦2

Important cases of superposition of waves:

(i) Two waves of same frequency moving in same direction
(ii) Two waves of same frequency moving in opposite direction
 Coherence:
i) Same frequency (or same wavelength)
ii) Zero or constant Phase difference

Types of coherence
1) Temporal coherence
2) Spatial coherence
1) Temporal Coherence

2) Spatial Coherence
 Methods to obtain coherent waves
i) Division of Amplitude:

The interference in thin films, Newton's rings, and Michelson's interferometer are examples of two beam
interference and Fabry-Perot's interferometer is an example of multiple beam interference.
 ii) Division of wave front:

The instruments used to obtain interference by division of wavefront are the Fresnel
biprism, Fresnel mirrors, Lloyd's mirror, lasers, etc