Introduction to Light

What is Light?
●​ Light is a type of electromagnetic wave - generated by electric and magnetic fields
●​ Energy can be transmitted in the form of a wave - light is a form of energy
●​ Light can travel as a stream of particles (Photon)
●​ Unlike the transfer of heat, light does not require a medium to be transported
●​ A medium is a physical substance that energy can be transferred (type of carrier)
●​ Light does not require a medium, can travel in space (no oxygen)
●​ Light energy is transferred through radiation

Parts of a Wave:
-​ Wavelength: Length from one point to another that repeats
-​ Trough: lowest point in a wave
-​ Peak: highest point in a wave
-​ Amplitude

Characteristics of a Wave:
●​ Frequency
○​ The number of waves that pass a point per second
○​ Or the number of waves created per second
●​ Wavelength
○​ How long each individual wave is
○​ Measured from the peak to peak or trough to trough of a wave

Higher frequency = lower wavelength

Lower frequency = higher wavelength
How is Light Produced?
1.​ Incandescence: the emission of light from a substance due to its high temperature
○​ Ex. light bulbs

2.​ Phosphorescence: a type of luminescence where a material absorbs light energy and then
slowly releases it over time, resulting in a glow-in-the-dark effect
○​ Ex. glow-in-the-dark toys

3.​ Fluorescence: the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other
electromagnetic radiation. It's a temporary phenomenon, meaning the substance stops
glowing as soon as the radiation source is removed
○​ Ex. Highlighters

4.​ Chemiluminescence: the emission of light from a chemical reaction

○​ Ex. glow sticks

5.​ Bioluminescence: the production and emission of light by a living organism

○​ Ex. fireflies

6.​ Electric Discharge: the rapid transfer of electrical charge between two objects, often
resulting in a visible spark or flash
○​ Ex. lightning

Electromagnetic Spectrum:
●​ Visible light: that we can see is one type of electromagnetic radiation (detectable by
human eye)
●​ 7 colours: res, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet (ROY - G - BIV)
●​ White light is made up of this spectrum of colours
●​ There are actually many different types that are classified according to their frequencies
(energy)

The Laser - a special type of light

*Laser - Light Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation
●​ Lasers have special properties
○​ Produces a pure colour - electromagnetic waves are the same wavelength and
energy level
○​ Produces an intense and concentrated light - waves travel in the same direction
The Ray Model of Light
1.​ Light Travel
●​ Fundamental property of light
-​ Light travels in straight lines
●​ We can represent this by using light rays
-​ Light Rays: a diagram showing the direction and path of light
Geometric Optics : is when we use light rays to determine how light behaves

2.​ Transmission of Light through Matter

●​ Matter can be transparent, translucent or opaque
○​ Transparent - allows all or most light to pass through (window)
○​ Translucent - allows some light to pass through (paper)
○​ Opaque - no light can pass through (door)

3.​ The Flat Mirror

By examining the interaction of light and a flat mirror we can observe how light behaves
●​ A mirror is any polished surface that produces a reflection
●​ A reflection is the bouncing back of light from any surface
●​ An image is the reproduction of an original object that is produced through the
use of light
➢​ Mirror Composition:
●​ 2 parts
○​ Front - sheet of clear glass
○​ Back - thin layer of very reflective silver or aluminum

Light Ray Terminology

●​ Plane - mirror or reflective surface
●​ Incident Ray - incoming ray striking a surface
●​ Reflected Ray - outgoing ray, bounce off a surface
●​ Normal - perpendicular line to a mirror surface
●​ Angle of Incidence - angle between the incident rays and normal (0i)
●​ Angle of Reflection - angle between the reflected ray and normal (0r)
 ​

The Laws of Reflection

1.​ The angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection
2.​ The incident ray, the reflected ray and the normal ray all lie in the same plane
3.​ The incident ray and reflected ray are on opposite sides of the normal

Reflecting Light off Surfaces

1.​ Specular Reflection - The reflection of light off a smooth surface
●​ The image will not be distorted
○​ Ex. reflection of calm lake water, a smooth piece of aluminum foil
2.​ Diffuse Reflection - The reflection of light off an irregular or dull surface
●​ The image created will be distorted
○​ Ex. reflection off a sheet of paper, wavy water surface, or crumpled aluminum foil

Reflection & Dyslexia

Dyslexia: a reading disability that occurs when the brain does not properly recognize and process
certain symbols
●​ Those with dyslexia complain of the glare when reading
●​ Contrast between white paper and black writing makes reading difficult
●​ Reduced difficulty through the use of coloured glasses to reduce glare (for some)

Image in a Plane Mirror

Formation of images:
●​ Images that are formed by the light are create by billions of light rays coming from a
course
●​ It would be near next impossible for us to keep track of every light ray that formed an
image
Ray Diagrams
●​ Ray diagrams are used in Geometric optics to outline how light rays will travel and
ultimately form images in sensors like our eyes or cameras
●​ Ray diagrams are used to draw and describe the images that our eyes would see

Characteristics used to describe images

SALT
●​ Size (height) - smaller, same, larger
●​ Attitude (orientation) - upright or inverted
●​ Location (distance from mirror) - where it is found
●​ Type - real (infront mirror), virtual (behind mirror)

Images in a plane mirror

1.​ Is always the same size as the object
2.​ Is laterally inverted
3.​ Is located behind the mirror
4.​ The image is virtual

S - same
A - laterally inverted
L - behind mirror
T - virtual

Curved Mirrors
Concave mirrors
●​ Mirror that curve inwards are known as concave mirrors
●​ If you look into the front of a spoon, you are looking at a concave mirror
●​ Also called Converging Mirrors
○​ This is because all the reflected to converge on a inner surface is the reflective
area

Parts of a Ray Diagram:

●​ Vertex: the point where the principle axis meets the mirror
●​ Centre of Curvature (C): since a curved mirror is really apart of a big sphere, the centre
of curvature is the radius of that imaginary sphere that the mirror is cut out from
●​ Principle Axis: is the line going through the centre of curvature and the centre of the
mirror
●​ Focus (F): the point where light rays parallel to the principal axis converge ; it is halfway
between the centre of curvature and the vertex
​ ​
Concave Ray Diagram:
Ray 1 - any ray that is parallel to the PA is reflected through F
Ray 2 - any ray that passes through F is reflected
Ray 3 - any ray that passes through C is reflected along the same path
Ray 4 - any ray that hits the vertex is reflected at the same angle

​ ​

Converging Mirrors
​ ​

Convex Mirrors
●​ In a convex mirror, the mirror curves outwards
●​ This is what you would see is you looked into the back of a spoon or in the corner of a
convenience store
●​ Convex mirrors cause light rays to diverge or to spread out
○​ They are known as diverging mirrors

Ray Diagrams for Diverging Mirrors

●​ Follow the same rules, but use the virtual focal point and centre of curvature (F’ & C’)
●​ F’ & C’ are on the opposite side of the mirror than the object
○​ You are trying to pinpoint where the reflected light rays appear to be coming from
●​ A real image cannot be formed in a diverging mirror since all reflected light rays spread
out from each other on the real side, they will never intersect to form an image
●​ Diverging mirrors always produce images that are Smaller, Upright, Behind Mirror,
Virtual

Ray 1 - any ray that is parallel to the PA is reflected as if it has passed through F’
Ray 2 - any ray that appears to have passed through F’ is reflected parallel to PA
Ray 3 - any ray that appears to have passed through C is reflected along the same path
Ray 4 - any ray that hits the vertex appears to have been reflected at the same angle

Images in a Diverging Mirror

●​ A diverging mirror has its focus behind the mirror
●​ A light ray parallel to the principal axis are reflected away from the virtual focus, which
is behind the mirror
​
The Refraction of Light
●​ In order for you to see an object, light must reflect from the object you are looking at and
reach your eyes
●​ Once and a while, after light has reached the object, the light will change its direction
before it has reached your eyes, causing you to be fooled
●​ This is known as Refraction

*Refraction : bending or change in direction of light when it travels from one material
(medium) into another
Why? Light travels at different speeds in different mediums

Rules of Refraction
1.​ The incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal all lie on the same plane. The incident
ray and the refracted ray are on opposite sides of the line that separates the two media
2.​ Light bends towards the normal when the speed of light in the second medium is less than
the speed of light in the first medium (less dense to more dense medium)
3.​ Light bends away from the normal when the speed of light in the second medium is
greater (more dense to less dense medium)

Refraction Laws
●​ Light moves slower in a thicker (more dense) medium
●​ The slower the light moves = smaller angle of refraction = closer to the normal
●​ Light moves faster in a thinner (less dense) medium
●​ The faster the light moves = greater angle of refraction = farther from the normal

Partial Reflection & Refraction

●​ Refraction is often accompanied by reflection
●​ Some of the light that strikes water is reflected off the water, but a great deal of the light
is also refracted as it enters the water and illuminates the water below the surface

The Index of Refraction

●​ The first measurement made of light in a medium other than air was made in 1862
●​ French physicist Jean Foucault
●​ In water the speed of light was 2.25 x 108 m/s
●​ Light since then has been ,measured in many different media
●​ Speed of light in a vacuum is 3.0 x 108 m/s
●​ Speed of light is different for each type of medium, but it is always less than the speed of
light in a vacuum
●​ Changes in the speed of light cause refraction (bending of light)
The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum to the speed of light in that medium

Formula: n = c jjibibhebic = (n)(v) nbbknnjbv = c

v bh n

n - index of refraction
c - speed of light in a vacuum (3.00 x 108 m/s)
v - speed of light in a given medium
●​ c and v are both speeds that have the same units, m/s (meters per second)
●​ The units m/s in the equation divide out, so n has no units
●​ n is a dimensionless quantity

* The greater the index of refraction (n) is, the slower the speed of light is in that medium

G - given
R - required (what needs to be solved)
A - analysis (the formula you will use)
S - solve
P - paraphrase (concluding sentence)

Total Internal Reflection

●​ Light travels from one medium into another where some light is reflected and refracted
●​ Light slows down when it travel from air into acrylic or water
●​ Therefore, the light bends towards the normal
●​ Light bends aways from the normal when it speeds up at the boundary of two mediums
●​ Index of refraction of water in medium 1> index of refraction of air in medium 2
●​ Angle of refraction is always larger than the angle of incidence
●​ The angle of refraction continues to increase as the angle of incidence increases
●​ Ultimately the angle of refraction will become 90॰
-​ Critical Angle
●​ Is the angle of incidence that produces a refracted angle of 90॰
●​ The angle if incidence is greater than the critical angle
●​ The refracted ray will not exit the medium but will reflect back into the medium
●​ The refracted ray disappears, only a reflected ray is visible
-​ Summary
●​ Total Internal Reflection occurs when:
1.​ Light is travelling more slowly in the first medium than in the second
2.​ The angle of incidence is large enough that no refraction occurs in the
second medium. The ray is reflected back into the first medium
1. Diamonds
●​ The sparkling of diamonds is due to the cut of the diamond faces combined with the high
index of refraction, which results in the total internal reflection of light
●​ A light ray can bounce around several times inside the diamond before exiting through a
top face of the gemstone

2. Fibre Optics
●​ Uses light to transmit information along a glass cable
●​ The cable must have a small critical angle so that light entering will have a greater angle
of incidence
●​ Used in the communications industry for phones, computers, tvs
●​ Medical professionals use fibre optic technologies to see into parts of the human body

3. The Triangle Prism

●​ Exhibits total internal reflection
●​ Prisms are much more useful to reflect light than mirrors because a prism reflects almost
100% of the light internally
●​ Most optical devices, such as cameras, use prisms

4. Retro-reflectors and Prisms

●​ An optical device that returns any incident light back in exactly the same direction from
which it came
●​ The emergent ray is parallel to the incident ray as a result of two total internal reflections
●​ Corner cube retro-reflector has three perpendicular faces
○​ It will reflect an incident ray coming from any direction along its original
direction
●​ The Laser Ranging Retro-Reflector left on the Moon by Apollo 11 is an example
●​ They are built into bike reflectors and reflective strips on clothings

Phenomena Related to Refraction

1.​ Apparent Depth
●​ Our brains perceive light rays to always travel in a straight line, it then projects
the rays backwards in a straight line to create a virtual image in the water
●​ The distance from the surface of the water to where the object appears to be (the
virtual image) is called the apparent depth
○​ Ex. when a pencil is placed in water, our brains project a virtual image that is
higher than the real pencil, resulting in the pencil appearing to be bent
●​ Objects under water always appear to be nearer to the surface than they actually
are
2.​ The “Flattened” Sun
●​ When the sun is near the horizon during sunset, it appears to be flattened
●​ When the sun is close to the horizon, light from the bottom of the sun is refracted
more than light from the top of the sun
●​ Air is more dense near earth’s surface than higher up in the atmosphere, so the
increased density of air results in greater bending of the sun’s rays
●​ The light rays from the bottom of the sun have a greater angle of incidence than
the light rays from the top of the sun
●​ This results in the sun having a flattened appearance rather than its familiar round
shape

3.​ Water on Pavement - The Mirage

●​ A mirage can appear when light is travelling from cool air into warmer air. The
index of refraction for air decreases as the air gets warmer
●​ This results in light bending farther away from the normal as the air temperature
continues to increase
●​ Total internal reflection occurs when the lowest (hottest) air layer, the light ray
now travels up from the hottest to the cooler layer and is refracted towards the
normal as the air temperature decreases
●​ This light ray enters our eyes
●​ In reality, the pool of water is a virtual image of the sky on the ground

4.​ Shimmering
●​ You can see a shimmering image of the moon on the water’s surface
●​ Shimmering is caused by light being refracted as it passes through air of different
temperatures
●​ Moonlight passes through layers of air that have different temperatures.
●​ In the coldest layer, light travels slowly
●​ In the hottest layer, light travels faster
●​ Eventually total internal reflection occurs in the lowest warm air layer
●​ This results in multiple virtual images of the moon on the water's surface

5.​ The Rainbow

●​ The separation of white light into its spectrum is called dispersion
●​ Dispersion occurs because each colour of the visible light travels at a slightly
different speed
●​ The rainbow is an optical phenomenon that is produced by water droplets
●​ The first step is refraction as light enters the raindrop, resulting in dispersion
 ●​ The second step is partial internal reflection when the light hits the back of the
raindrop
●​ The third step is refraction as the light exits the raindrop
●​ Our brains project these light rays backwards and form a virtual image of the
spectrum : a rainbow
●​ You can only see a rainbow when the sun is behind you

Lenses & the Formation of Images

What is a Lens?
●​ A lens is an optical device that has almost all light pass through it (transparent)
●​ It allows light rays to pass through and it also refracts light rays
●​ Lenses can exist in two basic shapes ; Converging and Diverging

1.​ A converging lens is thick in shape. Also known as a convex lens

2.​ A diverging lens is thin in shape. Also known as a concave lens

Converging Lens
●​ Make images larger
●​ Parallel light rays converge (or come together) through a single point after the light has
refracted through the lens. This point is referred to as the principal focus “F”

Diverging Lens
●​ Make images smaller
●​ Parallel light rays diverge after refraction from the lens
●​ The thickest portion of the lens is at the edges
●​ The thinnest portion of the lens is in the middle

The Path of Light Through a Lens

●​ In a lens, light is refracted at the first air to glass surface
●​ Light then travels through the glass of the lens and is refracted again at the glass to air
surface on the other side
 ​
○​ Therefore, there are always two refractions in a lens

●​ We are only concerned with the direction of the incident ray entering the lens and the
refracted ray leaving the lens
●​ This can be simplified by drawing a line at the centre of the lens, where refraction occurs

​ ​ ​

Converging Lens Terminology

●​ This pont right in the middle of the lens is called the optical centre (O)
○​ This is similar to the principal axis on curved mirrors
●​ The point a which refracted rays converge along the principal axis is known as the
principal focus (F)

​ ​
●​ Since this is a lens, a light source can be placed on either side of the lense and still create
the same refraction
●​ It is because of this that another focus point is located on the same side as the incident
rays. In order to be able to tell them apart, this is names the secondary principal focus
(F’) - is the same distance away from the lens as the principal focus
Ray Diagrams for Diverging Lenses
●​ The refracted rays move apart
●​ We draw dotted lines backwards from the refracted rays, to the focus
●​ There is a focus on each side of the lens
 ​ ​

●​ In diverging lenses, there is no converging point that the refracted rays meet
●​ BUT if you were to project the diverging refracted rays backwards - you will notice they
do have a convergence point
●​ This point is the diverging lens principal focus and it is on the same side as the incident
light rays (therefore it is a virtual focus point)
●​ The secondary principal focus is on the side of the lens where the rays diverge

Images in Lenses
Two things that can affect the characteristics of images with lenses:
 1.​ The kind of lens being used
2.​ The location of the object in reference to the lens

○​ Only two rays need to be drawn

○​ The major difference ; mirrors are considered reflected rays, in lenses they are
considered refracted rays (or emergent rays)
Emergent Rays: rays that leave the lens, being refracted as it gets from the lens back into air

Converging Lens:

●​ Five possible locations (SALT)

​
Diverging Lens:
●​ The light rays do not actually come from the principal focus(they only seem like they are)

●​ ALWAYS
-​ S - smaller
-​ A - upright
-​ L - b/w F and optical centre
-​ T - virtual
The Lens Equation
Thin Lens Equation:

do = distance to the object from the optical centre

○​ Always positive
di = distance to the image from the optical centre
○​ Real images - positive
○​ Virtual images - negative
f = focus length
○​ Converging - positive
○​ Divergiving - negative

Magnification Equation:

m = magnification of the lens (no units)

○​ Upright - positive
○​ Inverted - negative
hi = height of the image
○​ Upwards - positive
○​ Downwards - negative
ho = height of object
○​ Upwards - positive
○​ Downwards - negative
do = distance to the object from the optical centre
○​ Always positive
di = distance to the image from the optical centre
○​ Converging - positive
○​ Diverging - negative
Lens Applications
1. Camera - how does a camera compensate for a fixed position film?
○​ The camera will compensate by moving the lens in and out (focusing)

2. Film in a movie projector - where to place the film source on a movie projector?
○​ The film source must be located between 2F’ and F’, because the image is larger than the
object. The film must also be loaded upside down to produce an upright image

3. Describe how the human brain interprets the image?

○​ The brain extends the rays backwards to produce an enlarged, virtual images located on
the same side of the lens as the object

4. Microscope - describe how a light microscope produces an image?

○​ Uses 2 converging lenses. It produces 2 enlarged, inverted images ; 1 real and 1 virtual.
Real image is formed by the objective lens - do not see this image because it is in the
body tube of the microscope. The virtual image is formed by the eyepiece image, this is
the image we see

5. Telescope - describe how the type of images are formed by the refracting telescope?
○​ Produces 2 enlarged, inverted images ; 1 real (do not see) and 1 virtual (do see). The
image in a refracting telescope is inverted
The Human Eye

1.​ Iris: controls the amount of light entering the eye by changing the size of the pupil
2.​ Pupil: allows light to enter the eye
3.​ Cornea / Lens: bends light, helping it to focus onto the retina
4.​ Retina: converts light into electrical signals
5.​ Optic nerve: nerve fibers that transmit electrical signals from the retina to the brain

●​ We see with our brains ; the cornea-lens combination acts like a converging lens and
produces a smaller, real, inverted image on the retina. Electrical impulses from the retina
travel through the optic nerve to the brain. The brain sees this the image and flips it,
making it upright

●​ Accommodation: eyes muscles called ciliary muscles help the eye focus on distant and
nearby objects by slightly changing the shape of the eye lens. This changes the focal
length of the lens to allow focusing of the image on the retina

Hyperopia: far-sighted
-​ Can see far objects
-​ Can’t see near objects
●​ Happens because the eye cannot refract light well enough to form an image on the
retina
●​ Occurs because the distance between the lens and retina is too small or because
the cornea-lens combination is too weak
●​ Instead light from all nearby objects focus behind the retina
-​ A positive meniscus can fix this problem (thick converging lens)

■​ Presbyopia: a form of far-sightedness caused by the loss of accommodation as a

person ages
Myopia: near-sighted
-​ Can see near
-​ Can’t see far
●​ The inability of the eye to focus light from distant objects
-​ A negative meniscus can fix this problem (diverging lens)