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What is Light ?
Light is a form of electromagnetic energy detected
through its effects, e.g. heating of illuminated objects,
conversion of light to current, mechanical pressure
(Maxwell force) etc.
Light energy is conveyed through particles: photons
ballistic behavior, e.g. shadows
A=Amaxsin(2 x/ )
A=Amaxcos(2 x/
Wave vocabulary
wavelength = distance per cycle
wave number k = radians per distance
2 / = rad/cycle (cycle/m) = rad/m = k
period T = time per cycle
angular frequency = radians per second
2 /T = rad/cycle (cycle/s) = rad/s =
frequency f = number of cycles per second
f = cycles/second = 1/(second/cycles) = 1/T
Speed v = distance per time; wave travels in T
v = /T
=2
angular
frequency
E: electric
field
Light In Matter
Laser
Continuous wave (or cw):
strictly monochromatic,
spatially coherent
(e.g. HeNe, Ar+, laser diodes)
Pulsed: quasimonochromatic,
spatially coherent
(e.g. Q-switched, modelocked)
good approximation
most other cw lasers
rough approximation
pulsed lasers & nonlaser
sources need
more complicated
description
Incoherent: random, irregular waveform
direction of
energy propagation:
light ray
wavefronts
In homogeneous media,
light propagates in rectilinear paths
wavefronts
In homogeneous media,
light propagates in rectilinear paths
Colors
Spring 2008
14
Additive Colors
Red, Green, and Blue light
sources can be used to
synthesize almost any
perceivable color
Red + Green = Yellow
Red + Blue = Magenta
Green + Blue = Cyan
These three dual-source
colors become the
primary colors for
subtraction
why? because absence of
green is magenta
absence of red is cyan, etc.
Spring 2008
15
Introduction to Spectra
We can make a spectrum out of light,
dissecting its constituent colors
A prism is one way to do this
A diffraction grating also does the job
16
energy from
pretty much
all wavelengths
propagates along
the ray
wavefronts
In homogeneous media,
light propagates in rectilinear paths
White light
White light is the combination of all wavelengths,
with equal representation
red hot poker has much more red than blue light
experiment: red, green, and blue light bulbs make
white
RGB monitor combines these colors to display white
combined, white light
blue light
Spring 2008
green light
red light
wavelength
18
Fermat principle
mirror
incident
Prisms
air
glass
air
air
air
glass
air
23
air
Dispersion
Refractive index n is function of the wavelength
white light
(all visible
wavelengths)
red
air
glass
Newtons prism
gree
n
blue
Angle of incidence
exceeds critical
angle
other
material
air gap
Fingerprint sensor
finger
air
glass | air
TIR occurs
glass | finger
TIR does not occurs
(FTIR)
Optical waveguide