You learned in the previous lesson in this series that a particle with momentum has the properties of a wave. So how about a baseball? The lesson calculates the wavelengths of different particles given their momentum (mass and velocity),...

How does an electron qualify as a particle in a box? It behaves like a wave and, when bound to an atom, has boundaries. Using this notion, the professor explains a quantum mechanical calculation for a hydrogen atom. Given the length of...

How much energy does it take for an electron jump from chromium metal? Using a formula, the instructor describes the procedure for determining the wavelength of light needed for a specific metal to eject electrons. 

How can light be both a wave and particle? A video explains the co-existing wave and particle nature of light. Using formulas discussed in previous lessons in the series, the instructor develops the formula that shows the...

How are the wavelength, frequency, and speed of a wave related? The instructor in the video explains the process of determining the frequency of a wave with a known speed and wavelength. The wave is then classified along the...

Not sure how to introduce young physicists to the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principal? Well this short video is a great place to start, as it explains how the particle and wave nature of matter makes it impossible to know both the...

The nature of waves is revealed through a tank of water and computer animations. Your physics learners will be illuminated by viewing this explanatory video.

Refraction is the bending of light, changing its path. This phenomenon is caused by a change in the speed of the light waves. This video provides visual demonstrations of refraction through various media. It concludes by mentioning how...

Discover the secrets used by scientists to measure mechanical waves. Young physicists learn about measurable wave qualities—amplitude, wavelength, and frequency—by watching and listening to a video discussing longitudinal and transverse...

Illuminate lightwaves, even those not visible to the human eye, in a concise activity about the electromagnetic spectrum. Pupils watch and listen to an animated video describing the electromagnetic spectrum as well as frequency and...

We really only see objects that emit light, either on their own or by reflecting light from another source. Past misconceptions of light are illustrated, and current understandings of light illuminated. This could be used as an...

Did you know that the visible light wavelengths comprise only one inch of the electromagnetic spectrum that extends over 2,000 miles? Yet even the visible spectrum provides so much information. The Hydrogen spectrum is illuminated as an...

The casual voice of the filmmaker explains standing waves using a linked chain bordering a neighborhood parking lot, a bucket of blue-colored water, and a rope tied to a fan blade. He uses the appropriate vocabulary (frequency,...

Video provides a basic introduction to the phenomenon of light, the electromagnetic radiation spectrum, wave and particle-like behavior, and how to calculate the wavelength or frequency of a light wave. [9:36]

An explanation of the absorption and emission of energy using shell models. [10:30]

In the following video Paul Andersen explains how light can be treated as both a particle and a wave. Physicists use scale to determine which model to use when studying light. When the wavelength of light is equivalent to the size of the...

This video segment, adapted from ZOOM, explores sounds made by homemade drums of different sizes, shapes, and materials. [3:41]

In order to understand how we study the universe, we need to talk a little bit about light. Light is a form of energy. Its wavelength tells us its energy and color. Spectroscopy allows us to analyze those colors and determine an object's...

This lesson will show how to calculate wavelength and determine wave speed. It is 1 of 2 in the series titled "Wave Speed."

In the following video Paul Andersen explains how the wavelength is the distance between oscillations in a wave. In a longitudinal wave this might be the distance between areas of compression. In a transverse wave it might be the...

In the following video Paul Andersen explains how a sine or cosine wave can describe the position of the wave based on wavelength or wave period. A wave function can the position of a wave as a function or the amplitude and wavelength or...

Paul Andersen explains how diffraction can be affected by the size of the wavelength. When waves pass through an opening or move around an obstacle, a shadow region is created. The size of the shadow zone will decrease as the wavelength...

In this video Paul Andersen explains how the wavelength of a standing wave is determined by the boundary length and frequency of the wave. The fundamental frequency has a wavelength double the boundary length. Harmonics are built on the...

In the following video Paul Andersen explains how light can be absorbed, reflected, or transmitted as it moves from one medium to another. The reflection of different wavelengths creates the perceived color of an object. Absorbed light...