Double-Slit Interference Interference occurs whenever two or more waves combine to produce a resultant wave with a new resultant displacement The waves combine according to the principle of superpo...
Single-Slit Diffraction Diffraction is the spreading out of waves when they pass an obstruction This obstruction is typically a narrow slit known as an aperture As waves pass through the aperture, ...
Refraction When light crosses the boundary between two media with different optical densities, it refracts At the boundary, the light undergoes a change in direction The change in direction depends...
Reflection When light hits a smooth plane surface, most of it gets reflected Very smooth reflective surfaces (e.g. mirrors) are known as specular plane reflectors For these surfaces, the law of ref...
Reflection, Refraction & Transmission When waves arrive at a boundary between two materials, they can be: Reflected Refracted Transmitted Absorbed Reflection Reflection occurs when: A wave hits...
Malus's Law Intensity of Polarised Light The intensity of unpolarised light is reduced as a result of polarisation If unpolarised light of intensity I0 passes through a polariser, the intensity of ...
Polarisation Transverse waves can oscillate in any plane perpendicular to the direction of motion (and energy transfer) of the wave Such waves are said to be unpolarised When a transverse wave is p...
Superposition The principle of superposition states that: When two or more waves meet, the resultant displacement is the vector sum of the displacements of the individual waves The principle of sup...
Amplitude & Intensity Intensity The intensity of a wave is defined as follows: Power per unit area Intensity is measured in W m–2 Power is defined as: The rate of energy transfer Therefore, int...
