WAVES, SOUND AND LIGHT

1. Light from many sources, such as sunlight, appears white. When white light passes through a prism, however, it separates into a spectrum of varied colours. The methods used for colour specification today consist of accurate scientific measurements based on the wavelengths of each colour as given in the table below: Colour Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet Wavelength (nm) 780 - 622 622 597 597 577 577 492 492 455 455 430 430 - 390

a) What is meant by the spectrum of light? b) Name one similarity and one difference between the different colours of the spectrum. c) What assumptions can be made if two rays of light have the same wavelength? d) Name the colour which is most refracted. e) What colour is associated with the frequency 4,9 x 1014 Hz? 2. Explain why an apple appears to be red in white light.
3.

a) State Huygens Principle in words. b) What is meant by the diffraction of water waves? c) How can Huygens Principle be used to explain diffraction of water waves? 4. Explain what determines the colour of a) an opaque object b) a transparent object when illuminated with white light 5. a) Name the three primary colours. b) Name the secondary colours. c) A piece of blue paper has a red dot painted on it. State and explain its appearance in: (i) red light (ii) green light

6. What is the difference between addition and subtraction of colour. Use examples to illustrate your answer. 7. Calculate the wavelength of an electron (mass = 9,11 x 10-31 kg) moving at the speed of light. 8. Calculate the wavelength of a tennis ball mass 0,3 kg, traveling at 40 m.s-1. 9. Two wave-crests approach each other as indicated in the diagram.

a) What type of interference would you expect to occur? b) Draw a diagram to illustrate your answer in question a). c) What happens to the two wave-crests after they collided?

SOLUTIONS 1. a) A spectrum is the rainbow-like series of colours, produced by splitting white light into its component colours. b) Different colours of light are similar in consisting of electromagnetic radiations. They differ in having different frequencies and wavelengths. c) Two rays of light having the same wavelength also have the same frequency and the same colour. d) Violet. e) c = f 3 x 108 = 4,9 x 1014 . = 3 x 108_ 4,9 x 1014 = 6,12 x 10-7 m 1 x 10-9 = 612 nm 2. The apple consists of atoms whose electrons have the same frequency as all the colours of the light, except red. All the colours except red will be absorbed. The red light will be reflected, and therefore the apple will appear red in colour under white light. 3. a) Every point on a wavefront acts as the source of secondary wavelets that spread out in all directions with the same speed as the wave. The new wavefront is found by constructing the surface tangent to the secondary wavelet. b) Diffraction is the bending of waves around the edges of an opening or obstacle. c) When the wavefront goes through the opening, every point on it gives rise to new secondary wavelets. These wavelets spread out in all directions, including the area behind the edges of the opening.

4. a) An opaque object exhibit colour owing to selective reflection. b) A transparent object exhibit colour owing to selective

transmission. 5. a) Blue, green and red. b) Turquoise, magenta and yellow. c) (i) The paper appears black and dot is red in colour. (ii) The paper and the dot appear to be black in colour. 6. Addition colour mixing is the reproduction of any desired colour by adding together different amounts of just three colours, red, blue and green, which are called the additive primaries. This is how the colours in TV pictures are produced. The back of a TV screen is covered with a regular array of dots of three kinds of materials called phosphors. One kind glows red when an electron beam inside the TV tube hits it. The other kinds glow blue or green, respectively. Purple is created by stimulating the dots that glow blue and red. Yellow is created by red- and green-glowing dots. White is created by a mixture of red, green, and blue. Subtraction colour mixing is used in photographic transparencies and prints. Such pictures are made of transparent layers, each layer partly clear and partly coloured with one of the subtractive primaries magenta (red-blue), cyan (blue-green), or yellow (a combination of red and green). White light shining on a picture is a mixture of red, green and blue light. 7. = _h__ mv = 6,626 x 10-34____ 9,11 x 10-31. 3 x 108= 2,42 x 10-12 m

8.

= _h__ mv = 6,626 x 10-34 0,3. 40 = 5,52 x 10-35 m

9. a) Constructive interference

b) Results in double amplitude:

c) The two wave-crests continue to move on.