In Young's double-slit experiment, if the distance between the slits is doubled
Practice Questions
Q1
In Young's double-slit experiment, if the distance between the slits is doubled while keeping the wavelength constant, what happens to the fringe width?
It doubles
It halves
It remains the same
It quadruples
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
In Young's double-slit experiment, if the distance between the slits is doubled while keeping the wavelength constant, what happens to the fringe width?
Step 1: Understand the formula for fringe width, which is β = λD/d.
Step 2: Identify the variables in the formula: λ is the wavelength, D is the distance to the screen, and d is the distance between the slits.
Step 3: Note that in this scenario, the wavelength (λ) and the distance to the screen (D) remain constant.
Step 4: Recognize that if the distance between the slits (d) is doubled, we replace d with 2d in the formula.
Step 5: Substitute into the formula: β = λD/(2d).
Step 6: Compare the new fringe width (β) with the original fringe width (β = λD/d).
Step 7: Since β = λD/(2d) is half of β = λD/d, we conclude that the new fringe width is half of the original fringe width.
