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- Light acts as a wave and can be described by a wavelength λ and a frequency ν. One property of waves is that their speed is equal to their wavelength times their frequency. That means we have speed = λν s p e e d = λ ν
May 24, 2024 · We know that light is a wave based on how it behaves – it exhibits the same properties of other waves we have examined – it interferes with itself, it follows an inverse-square law for intensity (brightness), and so on.
Light is called an 'electromagnetic wave' for historical reasons* in the following sense: It turned out that the effects of visible light and other radiation can be calculated using Maxwell's equations, which are also used to model the behaviour of electrically charged particles. This was an instant of a successful unification and it hasn't ...
For example, when visible light encounters anything large enough that we can observe it with unaided eyes, such as a coin, it acts like a ray, with generally negligible wave characteristics. In all of these cases, we can model the path of light as straight lines.
Using a light source that emits a single wavelength of light (known as monochromatic, as it only has one wavelength of light present), the presence of interference fringes (patterns of dark and light spots) can be used to determine the flatness of a gap between two surfaces.
If light is a particle, then why does it refract when travelling from one medium to another? And if light is a wave, then why does it dislodge electrons ? But all behavior of light can be explained by combining the two models: light behaves like particles and light behaves like waves.
Brian Clegg. Published: October 25, 2021 at 10:00 am. Is light a wave or a particle? Neither: light is its own unique phenomenon – the outcome of an interaction between electrical and magnetic fields – and it behaves like both waves and particles. Most of us were taught at school that light is a wave. This is because it does things that waves do.
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Is light a wave or a particle?
Why is light called an 'electromagnetic wave'?
Is light a wave?
What is the difference between electromagnetic wave theory and light ray theory?
Does diffraction occur only with visible light?
What elements of light can be a wave?
As a result, different models describe different aspects of light’s behavior. The electromagnetic wave theory explains light’s ability to travel through a vacuum. The light ray model, on the other hand, can describe interactions between light and matter.
