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Appendix 3
Young’s Double Slit Experiment
Young’s double slit experiment is a classic demonstration of the wave nature of
light. In 1801, Thomas Young performed the first iteration of what has come to
be known as Young’s double slit experiment. You can perform this experiment
in your lab quite simply. In this experiment, a coherent light source (e.g., a laser
pointer) is aimed at a metal plate with two small slits cut in it and the light that
passes through is observed on a screen placed behind the metal, opposite the
light source. The slits should be placed closely together, usually within <1 mm
of each other; the viewing screen should be placed several centimeters from the
metal slits.
On the screen, one observes alternating intense and dim regions known as a
diffraction pattern.
If light behaved only as particles, one would expect to see only patterns that
depend on the size and shape of the slits. However, the diffraction pattern occurs
because light passing through the two slits interferes with the light from the other
slit. As the light propagates out of the slits at various angles, it interferes with the
light leaving the other slit. Depending on the angle between the slits and the
screen, the light travels a path that is equivalent to some number of light wave-
lengths. But, because of the small offset between the slits, the distance from the
Figure A3.1
Cell phone camera image of diffracted spots on a ruler. The experiment was performed using a double
slit and a 633 nm laser pointer.
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290 Appendix 3: Young’s Double Slit Experiment
first slit to the screen is slightly different from the distance from the second slit to
the screen. At different points on the screen, these distances either correspond to
the wave peaks of the light lining up with each other or being out of phase, which
results in alternating patterns of constructive and destructive interference. This
gives rise to the spots of alternating intensity on the viewing screens, and confirms
the wave nature of light.
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