Question

In: Physics

A beam of white light (400 – 700 nm) is shone at a small equilateral quartz...

A beam of white light (400 – 700 nm) is shone at a small equilateral quartz prism. 1.5 m behind the prism is a large screen. What is observed on the screen, and where, if (A) the beam is incident on a vertex of the prism, and (B) if the beam is incident normal to one of the faces? Assume both the prism and the width of the beam are non-zero but negligible relative to the prism-screen distance. The index of refraction of quartz for 400 nm light is 1.47 and it is 1.45 for 700 nm light.

Please answer part B numerically, many answers are claiming the screen would show white light in part B. However, wouldn't the beam pass following the normal when entering, however diffract when exiting the prism?

Solutions

Expert Solution

There is difference in refraction and diffraction, refraction occurs when light passes from one medium to another and diffraction occurs when light remains in the same medium but encounters an obstacle of the size comparable to wavelength of the light. Part a of the problem shows diffraction while part b of the problem shows refraction. Hope you got the clarity in the two phenomenon, if there is any doubt plz ask.


Related Solutions

Consider a beam of white light striking a face of an equilateral prism at an incident...
Consider a beam of white light striking a face of an equilateral prism at an incident angle of Theta(1)= 50
A spectrum of visible light colors from 400 nm to 700 nm is incident on a...
A spectrum of visible light colors from 400 nm to 700 nm is incident on a diffraction grating that has 500 lines per mm, projecting a pattern on a screen 2.4 m behind the grating. a. Determine the width of the spectrum that corresponds to m = 1 b. How much distance separates the end of the m = 1 spectrum and the start of the m = 2 spectrum?
A horizontal incident beam consisting of white light passes through an equilateral prism, like the one...
A horizontal incident beam consisting of white light passes through an equilateral prism, like the one shown in the figure What is the dispersion (θv−θr) of the outgoing beam if the prism's index of refraction is nv = 1.509 for violet light and nr = 1.431 for red light?
A physics instructor wants to project a spectrum of visible-light colors from 400 nm to 700...
A physics instructor wants to project a spectrum of visible-light colors from 400 nm to 700 nm as part of a classroom demonstration. She shines a beam of white light through a diffraction grating that has 600 lines per mm, projecting a pattern on a screen 2.9 m behind the grating. How wide is the spectrum that corresponds to m = 1? Express your answer with the appropriate units. How much distance separates the end of the m = 1...
A beam of light shines on an equilateral glass prism at an angle of 45∘ to...
A beam of light shines on an equilateral glass prism at an angle of 45∘ to one face (figure (a) below). 1) What is the angle at which the light emerges from the opposite face given that nglass = 1.57? (Express your answer to three significant figures.) 2) Now consider what happens when dispersion is involved (figure (b)). Assume the incident ray of light spans the spectrum of visible light between 400 nm and 700 nm (violet to red, respectively)....
The indices of refraction for the fast and slow axes of quartz with 589 nm light...
The indices of refraction for the fast and slow axes of quartz with 589 nm light are 1.5462 and 1.5553, respectively. (a) By what fraction of a wavelength is the e-ray retarded, relative to the o-ray, for every wavelength of travel in quartz? (b) What is the minimum thickness of quartz needed to manufacture a quarter-wave plate (QWP)? (c) Imagine that the thickness found in part (b) turned out to be too thin for the QWP to be durable and...
The human eye can readily detect wavelengths from about 400 nm to 700 nm
The human eye can readily detect wavelengths from about 400 nm to 700 nm.If white light illuminates a diffraction grating having 730 lines/mm, over what range of angles does the visible m = 1 spectrum extend? Express your answers using three significant figures separated by a comma.θmin, θmax= ____________degrees
A beam of white light is incident on the surface of a diamond at an angle...
A beam of white light is incident on the surface of a diamond at an angle ?a.(Figure 1) Since the index of refraction depends on the light's wavelength, the different colors that comprise white light will spread out as they pass through the diamond. The indices of refraction in diamond are nred=2.410 for red light and nblue=2.450 for blue light. The surrounding air has nair=1.000. Note that the angles in the figure are not to scale. Part A Calculate vred,...
The indices of refraction for violet light (λ = 400 nm) and red light (λ =...
The indices of refraction for violet light (λ = 400 nm) and red light (λ = 700 nm) in diamond are 2.46 and 2.41, respectively. A ray of light traveling through air strikes the diamond surface at an angle of 51.5 ∘ to the normal. A) Calculate the angular separation between these two colors of light in the refracted ray.
A narrow beam of light containing red (660 nm) and yellow (580 nm) wavelengths goes from...
A narrow beam of light containing red (660 nm) and yellow (580 nm) wavelengths goes from polystyrene to air, striking the surface at a 34.5° incident angle. What is the angle (in degrees) between the colors when they emerge? ° (b) How far would they have to travel (in m) to be separated by 1.00 mm? m
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT