Electromagnetic wave

Electromagnetic waves are waves which

can travel through the vacuum of outer
space. Mechanical waves, unlike
electromagnetic waves, require the
presence of a material medium
in order to transport their
energy
from one location to another.
Sound waves are
examples of mechanical waves while
light waves are examples of electromagnetic waves.
Electromagnetic waves are created by the vibration of an electric
charge. This vibration creates a wave which has both an electric
and a magnetic component. An electromagnetic wave transports its
energy through a vacuum at a speed of 3.00 x 108 m/s (a speed
value commonly represented by the symbol c). The propagation of
an electromagnetic wave through a material medium occurs at a net
speed which is less than 3.00 x 108 m/s. This is depicted in the
animation below.

Electromagnetic Spectrum
The electromagnetic spectrum is
the range of all possible frequencies
of electromagnetic radiation. The
"electromagnetic spectrum" of an
object has a different meaning, and
is instead the characteristic
distribution of electromagnetic radiation emitted or absorbed by
that particular object. The electromagnetic spectrum extends from
below the low frequencies used for modern radio communication
to gamma radiation at the short-wavelength (high-frequency) end,
thereby covering wavelengths from thousands of kilometers down to
a fraction of the size of an atom. The limit for long wavelengths
is the size of the universe itself, while it is thought that the
short wavelength limit is in the vicinity of the Planck
length. Until the middle of last century it was believed by most
physicists that this spectrum was infinite and continuous.

Radio Waves

Radio waves are a type of electromagnetic radiation with

wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum longer than
infrared light. Radio waves have frequencies from 300
GHz to as low as 3 kHz, and corresponding wavelengths
ranging from 1 millimeter (0.039 in) to 100 kilometers
(62 mi). Like all other electromagnetic waves, they
travel at the speed of light. Naturally
occurring radio waves are made by
lightning, or by astronomical objects.
Artificially generated radio waves are
used for fixed and mobile radio
communication, broadcasting, radar and other navigation systems,
communications satellites, computer networks and innumerable
other applications. Radio waves are generated by radio
transmitters and received by radio receivers. Different
frequencies of radio waves have different propagation
characteristics in the Earth's atmosphere; long waves can
diffract around obstacles like mountains and follow the contour
of the earth (ground waves), shorter waves can reflect off the
ionosphere and return to earth beyond the horizon (sky waves),
while much shorter wavelengths bend or diffract very little and
travel on a line of sight, so their propagation distances are
limited to the visual horizon.

Microwaves
Microwaves are a type of electromagnetic radiation, as are radio
waves, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays and gamma-rays. Microwaves
have a range of applications, including communications, radar
and, perhaps best known by most people, cooking.
Microwaves have frequencies ranging from about 3 billion cycles
per second, or 3 gigahertz (GHz), up to about 30 trillion hertz
(terahertz or THz) and wavelengths of about 30 centimeters (12
inches) to 3 millimeters (0.12 inches), although these values are
not definitive. This region is further divided into a number of
bands, designated as L, S, C, X and K.

Infrared radiation

Infrared radiation is a type of electromagnetic radiation, as are

radio waves, ultraviolet radiation, X-rays and microwaves.
Infrared (IR) light is the part of the EM spectrum that people
encounter most in everyday life, although much of it goes
unnoticed. It is invisible to human eyes, but people can feel it
as heat.
IR radiation is one of the
three ways heat is transferred
from one place to another, the
other two being convection and
conduction. Everything with a
temperature above about 5
degrees Kelvin (minus 450
degrees Fahrenheit or minus 268
degrees Celsius) emits IR
radiation. The sun gives off
half of its total energy as IR,
and much of its visible light
is absorbed and re-emitted as IR, according to the University of
Tennessee.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, incandescent
bulbs convert only about 10 percent of their electrical energy
input into visible light energy; about 90 percent is converted to
infrared radiation. Household appliances such heat lamps and
toasters use IR radiation to transmit heat, as do industrial
heaters such as those used for drying and curing materials. These
appliances generally emit blackbody radiation with a peak energy
output below the wavelength of visible, though some energy is
emitted as visible red light.

Visible light
Visible light is a form
of electromagnetic (EM)
radiation, as are radio
waves, infrared
radiation, ultraviolet
radiation, X-rays and
microwaves. Generally,
visible light is defined
as the wavelengths that
are visible to most human
eyes.
EM radiation is transmitted in waves or particles at different
wavelengths and frequencies. This broad range of wavelengths is
known as the electromagnetic spectrum. That spectrum is typically
divided into seven regions in order of decreasing wavelength and
increasing energy and frequency. The common designations are
radio waves, microwaves, infrared (IR), visible light,
ultraviolet (UV), X-rays and gamma-rays.
Visible light falls in the range of the EM spectrum between
infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV). It has frequencies of about 4
1014 to 8 1014 cycles per second, or hertz (Hz) and
wavelengths of about 740 nanometers (nm) or 2.9 105 inches, to
380 nm (1.5 105 inches).

Ultraviolet light
as

Ultraviolet light is a type of electromagnetic radiation,

are radio waves, infrared radiation, X-rays
and gamma-rays. UV light, which comes
from the sun, is invisible to the human
eye. It makes black-light posters glow,
and is responsible for summer tans and
sunburns. However, too much exposure to UV
radiation is damaging to living tissue.

Electromagnetic radiation is transmitted in waves

or particles at different wavelengths and frequencies. This broad
range of wavelengths is known as the electromagnetic (EM)
spectrum. The spectrum is generally divided into seven regions in
order of decreasing wavelength and increasing energy and
frequency. The common designations are radio waves, microwaves,
infrared (IR), visible light, ultraviolet (UV), X-rays and gammarays.
Ultraviolet (UV) light falls in the range of the EM spectrum
between visible light and X-rays. It has frequencies of about 8
1014 to 3 1016 cycles per second, or hertz (Hz), and
wavelengths of about 380 nanometers (1.5 105 inches) to about
10 nm (4 107 inches). According to the U.S. Navy's
"Ultraviolet Radiation Guide," UV is generally divided into three
sub-bands: UVA, or near UV (315400 nm); UVB, or middle UV (280
315 nm); and UVC, or far UV (180280 nm). The guide goes on to
state, "Radiations with wavelengths from 10 nm to 180 nm are
sometimes referred to as vacuum or extreme UV." These wavelengths
are blocked by air, and they only propagate in a vacuum.

X-rays
X-rays are a form of
electromagnetic radiation, as
are radio waves, infrared
radiation, visible light,
ultraviolet radiation and
microwaves. One of the most
common and beneficial uses of
X-rays is for medical
imaging. X-rays are also used
in treating cancer and in
exploring the cosmos.
X-rays are roughly classified into two types: soft X-rays and
hard X-rays. Soft X-rays fall in the range of the EM spectrum
between (UV) light and gamma-rays. Soft X-rays have comparatively
high frequencies about 3 1016 cycles per second, or hertz, to
about 1018 Hz and relatively short wavelengths about 10
nanometers (nm), or 4 107 inches, to about 100 picometers
(pm), or 4 108 inches. (A nanometer is one-billionth of a
meter; a picometer is one-trillionth of a meter.) Hard X-rays
have frequencies of about 1018 Hz to higher than 1020 Hz and
wavelengths of about 100 pm (4 109 inches) to about 1 pm (4
1011 inches). Hard X-rays occupy the same region of the EM
spectrum as gamma-rays. The only difference between them is their
source: X-rays are produced by accelerating electrons, while
gamma-rays are produced by atomic nuclei.

Gamma-rays
Gamma-rays are a form of
electromagnetic
radiation, as are radio
waves, infrared
radiation, ultraviolet
radiation, X-rays and
microwaves. Gamma-rays
can be used to treat
cancer, and gamma-ray
bursts are studied by
astronomers.
Gamma-rays fall in the
range of the EM spectrum above soft X-rays. Gamma-rays have
frequencies greater than about 1018 cycles per second, or hertz
(Hz), and wavelengths of less than 100 picometers (pm), or 4
10-9 inches. (A picometer is one-trillionth of a meter.) They
occupy the same region of the EM spectrum as hard X-rays. The
only difference between them is their source: X-rays are produced
by accelerating electrons, whereas gamma-rays are produced by
atomic nuclei.