What is the effect of increasing the wavelength on the diffraction pattern?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
What is the effect of increasing the wavelength on the diffraction pattern?
Fringes become narrower
Fringes become wider
No effect
Fringes disappear
Increasing the wavelength results in wider fringes in the diffraction pattern, as fringe width is directly proportional to the wavelength.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: What is the effect of increasing the wavelength on the diffraction pattern?
Solution: Increasing the wavelength results in wider fringes in the diffraction pattern, as fringe width is directly proportional to the wavelength.
Steps: 5
Step 1: Understand what a diffraction pattern is. It is the pattern created when waves, like light, spread out after passing through a small opening or around an obstacle.
Step 2: Know that wavelength is the distance between two consecutive peaks of a wave. Longer wavelengths mean the peaks are further apart.
Step 3: Realize that when you increase the wavelength, the distance between the peaks of the wave increases.
Step 4: Understand that in a diffraction pattern, the distance between the bright and dark fringes (lines) is related to the wavelength.
Step 5: Conclude that if the wavelength increases, the fringes in the diffraction pattern will also spread out, making them wider.
