Dr.

Uma Das
Email: uma@iiitkalyani.ac.in
The topics covered so far and Pending
 Chapter: OPTICS
 Interference- Superposition of waves, conditions for
interference, coherence, fringe width, Division of
wavefront and amplitude, YDSE, Fresnel’s Biprism,
Llyods Prism, Interference in Thin films, Newton’s
Rings, Michelson Morley Experiment
 Fresnel and Fraunhofer diffraction, Fraunhofer
diffraction in single slit and double slit, theory of
grating.
 Reading Material:
 ‘Optics’, Ajoy Ghatak, Chapters
What is Diffraction
 Bending of light round the corners of obstacles or
encroachment of light within the geometrical shadow
is defined as Diffraction.
Fruanhoffer and Fresnel Diffraction
 Source and screen are
effectively at infinite distance
 Convex lens is used to make
the light from the source
parallel before it falls on the
aperture and another convex
lens is used to focus the light
on the screen for diffraction
 Incident wavefront is plane
 Diffraction is produced by
interference between parallel
rays which are brought to
focus with convex lens
 Source and screen are at finite
distances
 No lenses are used to make
the rays parallel or
convergent.
 Incident wavefront is not
plane but spherical or
cylindrical
 Diffraction is produced by
mutual interference of
secondary waves from
different elements of the
exposed part of wavefront.
Fraunhoffer diffraction at a single slit

 Central Maxima
 Alternating minima and maxima with decrasing
intensity.
 Condition for Minima: a sinqn = nl
 Condition for Maxima: a sinqn = (2n+1)l/2
 If the lens L2 lies close to the slit or the screen is far away
from the lens L2 then sinq = y/f, where f is the focal length
of the lens.
 Also, sinq = l/a (position of first minima)
 So, y/f = l/a or y = f l/a
 Width of the central maxima is distance between the two
minima, i.e., 2y = 2fl/a
 Thus width of central maxima is directly proportional to
wavelength and inversely proportional to the slit width.
A slit of width ‘a’ is illuminated by light of
wavelength 600 nm. For what value of ‘a’ will the
first maxima fall at an angle of diffraction of 30°.
(2n  1)l
sin q n 
2a
3l
a
2 sin q1

a = 1.8 micron
Fraunhoffer Diffraction of a double slit
 The resultant intensity distribution is a product of the
diffraction pattern due to single slit and the
interference pattern produced due to two narrow slits.
 Condition for minima:
b sin q n  nl
l
d sin q n  (2n  1)
2
 Condition for Maxima:
l
b sin q n  (2n  1)
2
d sin q n  nl
 Missing orders: Maximum will not occur if it
corresponds to a diffraction minimum.
The Diffraction Grating
 An arrangement consisting of a large number of
equidistant slits is known as a diffraction grating.
 The corresponding spectrum is called grating spectrum.
 A grating is obtained by ruling equidistant parallel lines on
a glass plate. The lines act like opaque wires and light can
pass through the spaces in between.
 If a is the width of the transparency and b is the width of
the opacity, then (a+b) is called as the grating element.
 E.g.: If number of lines on a grating are 15000 lines/inch,
then grating element = (a+b) = 1/15000 cm = 6.7 x 10-5 cm
Principal Maxima &
Secondary Minima and Maxima
 Principal Maxima: (a  b) sin q n  nl

 Secondary Minima: ( a  b) sin( q n  dq )  nl 

l
(N-1) minima N
 Secondary Maxima:
(N-2) Maxima
 The intensity as well as angular spacing of secondary
maxima and minima is very small that they cannot be
observed. It results in uniform darkness between any two
principal maxima.
Applications:
1. Determination of wavelength of a
spectral line
2. X-ray diffraction to measure
interatomic distances in crystals
3. Etc.
Rayleigh Criterion

 ‘Two points or two spectral lines of equal intensity are just

resolved by an optical instrument, when central maximum
of the diffraction pattern due to one falls on the first
minimum of diffraction patter of the other.’
 Let us consider the intensity distribution curve of two
wavelengths l and l+dl. If dl is larger then the two
spectral lines are easily resolvable.
 Resolving Power of a Grating
Condition for maxima of l
(a  b) sin q  nl
Condition for maxima of l +d l
(a  b) sin( q n  dq )  n(l  dl )  1
Condition for first secondary minima of l.
l
(a  b) sin( q n  dq )  nl 
2
N
l
From 1 & 2 n(l  dl )  nl 
N
l
 nN
dl
Under this condition the two
lines will appear just resolved.
Light is incident normally on a grating 0.5 cm
wide with 2500 lines. Find the angle of diffraction
for the principal maxima of the two sodium lines
(l1 = 589 nm and l2 = 589.6 nm) in the first order
spectrum. Are the two lines resolved?
1 1
ab  * 0.5 
2500 5000
(a  b) sin q1  nl1  q1  sin 1 (589 10 7 * 5000)  17.13
(a  b) sin q 2  nl2  q 2  sin 1 (589.6 10 7 * 5000)  17.15
l 589 10 7
 nN   1 N  N  982
dl 0.6 10 7

Since N= 2500, the two lines will appear well resolved.

Comparison b/w Prism & Grating
 Grating: Diffraction
 Prism: Refraction

 And the difference:

Longer wavelengths
(red) are diffracted more,
but refracted less than
shorter wavelengths
(violet).
To Summarise
 Diffraction
 Fraunhofer and Fresnel Diffractions
 Fraunhofer diffraction of single slit
 Fraunhofer diffraction of double slit
 Principal Maxima
 Secondary Minima and Maxima
 Theory of Grating
 Principal Maxima
 Secondary Minima and Maxima
 Resolving Power of a grating
 + some problems 