Wave Optics (Lecture 1).pptVIP

Prelude: Rainbow In a rainbow, raindrops in the air act like tiny prisms. Light enters the drop at A, is reflected at the back of the drop at B and leaves the drop at C. In the process the sunlight is broken into a spectrum just like it is in a triangular glass prism. The angle between the ray of sunlight coming in and the ray coming out of the drops is 42 degrees for red and 40 degrees for violet rays. This small angular difference between the returning rays causes us to see the bow. Wave optics (interference, diffraction, polarization..) 1. Interference Conditions for interference: light sources must be coherent (must maintain a constant phase each other) sources must have identical wavelength superposition principle must apply Young’s double-slit interference Setup: light shines at the plane with two slits Result: a series of parallel dark and bright bands called fringes Young’s double-slit interference Path difference: d = d sinq If: d = m l: constructive interference If: d = (m+1/2) l: destructive int. 2. Diffraction Diffraction occurs when light deviates from a straight line path and enters a region that would otherwise be shadowed. “bending of light around corner” Single-slit diffraction Each portion of the slit acts as a source of waves: interference * * Wave Optics Lecture 1 Wavefront splitting * Amplitude splitting Young’s double-slit interference Young’s double-slit interference d In optics, optical path length (OPL) or optical distance is the product of the geometric length of the path of light, and the index of refraction of the medium through which it propagates. A difference in optical path length between two paths is often called the optical path difference (OPD). Optical path length is important because it determines the phase of the light and governs interference and diffraction of light as it propagates. Optical path length In a medium of constant refractive index, n, the OPL for a path of physical length d is just If