L1: Nature of Light

Optics

The study of light and the interaction of light and matter are termed as optics. The optics is an
important research area in modern physics. Optics is conveniently divided into three fields,
each of which requires a markedly different method of theoretical treatment. Theses are:
(a) Geometrical optics, which is treated by the method of light ray and deals
with the reflection and refraction in optical instruments.
(b) Physical optics, which is concerned with the nature of light and involves
primarily the theory of waves, and deals with phenomena of interference,
diffraction and polarization.
(c) Quantum optics, which deals with the interaction of light with atomic
entities of matter and which for an exact treatment requires the methods of
quantum mechanics.

Nature of Light

Since the beginning of time, humans have strived to discover and understand what light
exactly is. Because, light affects everything. Without it, there would be nothing. In fact, light
has had a great impact on our culture.
Up until the 1900s, different theories developed on the nature of light, but no certain ideas.
Two questions kept being asked. Is light a particle or a wave? Finally, Albert Einstein showed
that it was both! Now to explain the nature of light we need the following four theories;
1. corpuscular theory
2. wave theory
3. electromagnetic theory, and
4. quantum theory

Corpuscular theory
This theory was originated by Sir Isaac Newton in 1672. According to this theory, a luminous
body continuously emits tiny, light and elastic particles called ‘corpuscle’ in all directions.
When these particles fall on the retina of the eye, they produce sensation of vision. This theory
successfully explained the phenomena of reflection and refraction, but failed to explain
interference, diffraction, polarization and photo-electric effect.

Wave theory
In 1679 scientist Huygens proposed this theory known as Huygens’s principle. According to
his principal, a luminous body is a source of disturbance in a hypothetical medium called
‘ether’. The ether was defined as the matter that filled all of space and carried the light from
the sun and the stars. The disturbance from the source is propagated in the form of waves
through space and energy is distributed equally in all directions. When these waves carrying
energy fall on the eye, the optics nerves are excited and the sensation of vision is produced.
This theory could explain satisfactory the reflection, refraction, diffraction and polarization.

Electromagnetic theory
Another physicist, James Clerk, came up with a new theory of light in 1867. His idea was that
light waves consisted of electric and magnetic forces that change very rapidly i.e. light is an
electro-magnetic (EM) waves. The changing magnetic field produces time and space varying
electric field, and the changing electric field produces time and space varying magnetic field.
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 L1: Nature of Light

When the vibrating electric and magnetic field vectors are of the same phase and right angle to
each other then the direction of propagation will be the right angle to this vector. This theory
can explain reflection, refraction, polarization and interference of light.

Quantum theory
Albert Einstein came up with the quantum theory of light in the early twentieth century. He
proposed that light was made up of small tightly packs of energy, called photons or quanta
(singular, quantum). A quantum's frequency is determined by the amount of energy it contains.
This theory explained the emission of black body radiation and photo-electric effect, but failed
to explain interference, polarization, diffraction of light.

Electromagnetic spectrum and energy

The electromagnetic (EM) spectrum is just a name that scientists give a bunch of types of
radiation when they want to talk about them as a group. That means the EM spectrum is the
distribution of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation. It extends from below
frequencies used for modern radio through to gamma radiation at the short-wavelength.
Radiation is the energy that travels and spreads out as it goes.
EM waves are typically described by any of the following three physical properties: the
frequency f, wavelength λ, or photon energy E. There relations can be illustrated by the
following equations:
c E hc
f  or f  or E
 h 
Where:
c = 3 × 108 m/s (speed of light in vacuum) and
h = 6.63 ×10−34 J·s (Planck's constant).
As the wavelength is inversely proportional to the frequency, so gamma rays have very short
wavelengths that are fractions of the size of atoms, whereas wavelengths can be as long as the
universe. On the other hand, photon energy is directly proportional to the wave frequency, so
gamma rays have the highest energy around a billion electron volts (GeV) and radio waves
have very low energy around femto electron volts (feV).

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The following Fig. shows the EM spectrum in terms of wavelength and frequency, and their
ranges are listed in the table.

Frequency Energy
Region Wavelength (m)
(Hz) (eV)
Radio >1 < 3 x 108 < 10-5
10-5 -
Microwave 1 – 10-3 3 x 108 - 3 x 1011
0.01
Infrared 10-3 - 7 x 10-7 3 x 1011 - 4.3 x 1014 0.01 - 2
Visible 7 x 10-7 - 4 x 10-7 4.3 x 1014 - 7.5 x 1014 2-3
Ultraviolet 4 x 10-7 - 8 x 10-9 7.5 x 1014 – 3.75 x 1016 3 - 103
X-Rays 8 x 10-9- 10-11 3.75 x 1016 - 3 x 1019 103 - 105
Gamma
< 10-11 > 3 x 1019 > 105
Rays

The notation "eV" stands for electron-volts, a common unit of energy measure in atomic physics.

Properties of electromagnetic wave:

An electromagnetic wave in a vacuum
 consists of mutually perpendicular and oscillating electric and magnetic fields.
 is a transverse wave, since the fields are perpendicular to the direction in which the
wave travels.
 travel through a vacuum at the same speed, the speed of light c (c = 3.00 x 108m/s).
 travel after the source is turned off.
 The frequency f and wavelength λ (lambda) of an electromagnetic wave in a vacuum are
related to its speed through the relation c = f λ .
 The velocity is perpendicular to both the electric field and the magnetic field.
 The ratio of the peak electric field to the peak magnetic field equals the speed of the
waves.

Example of Electromagnetic Waves:

Radio waves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and gamma rays are
all types of electromagnetic waves. They differ from each other in wavelength.