Students investigate an example of interference that provides further evidence in support of the wavelike behavior of light.

Explains what diffraction and interference are, and what kinds of patterns are produced when light waves pass through a single slit, a double slit, or a diffraction grating. Includes three problems for students to try, with solutions...

An interactive resource on diffraction, interference and superposition with descriptions, animations, and questions.

Learners are introduced to the concept of refraction. After making sure they understand the concepts of diffraction and interference, students work collaboratively to explain optical phenomena that cannot be accounted for via these two...

Kids learn about the behavior of light as a wave in the science of physics including reflection, refraction, and diffraction.

This lab is designed to allow students to look at the factors affecting the angle at which constructive interference occurs for waves passing through a two slit diffraction grating. This video helps explain the problem:...

Light travels as transverse waves and can travel through a vacuum. Sound travels as longitudinal waves and needs to travel through a solid, liquid or gas. Read about the properties of light and of sound, and learn the differences between...

Learn about the diffraction of light using the wave model and Huygen's principle.

This activity is designed for students to apply their knowledge of mathematics and physics to "real life" situations. Students are presented with the situation that they are on a camping trip and wish to know the wavelength emitted by a...

An indexing page for a physics department site about the wave properties of light that lead to interference.

Demonstrate light bending called diffraction in this activity.

Students will make their own spectroscope, learn how light is bent by a diffraction grating, and explore how various forms of light differ.

Students find and calculate the angle that light is transmitted through a holographic diffraction grating using trigonometry. After finding this angle, student teams design and build their own spectrographs, researching and designing a...

Through two classroom demos, students are introduced to the basic properties of lasers through various mediums. In the Making an Electric Pickle demonstration, students see how cellular tissue is able to conduct electricity, and how this...

Middle schoolers learn the basic properties of light--the concepts of light absorption, transmission, reflection and refraction, as well as the behavior of light during interference. Lecture information briefly addresses the...

Rainbows and sunsets are called "atmospheric optics". They can be caused by light being absorbed, reflected, scattered, refracted, or diffracted by particles in the atmosphere. Learn all about different atmospheric optics along with...

A short biographical sketch of Thomas Young's (1863- 1942) life as a mathematician and a scientist. Gives an account of his birth and the final years of his life.

Light travels as waves. Waves can be described by their amplitude, wavelength and frequency. The speed of a wave can be calculated from its frequency and wavelength.

An activity to demonstrate how light behaves when encountering an obstacle, in this case, wax blocks placed in a ripple tank. Includes an explanation of the diffraction that occurs.

Analyze light by creating a CD spectroscope in this activity. See the whole spectrum of light with the spectroscope.

A collection of several pages explaining the principles which underlie Rayleigh scattering of light.

Make your own rainbow candy in this fun STEM activity. You will do it without using any food coloring. Instead, you will use a light-bending phenomenon called diffraction.

[Free Registration/Login Required] Learn about the interference and diffraction patterns that result when a wave passes through one or two thin openings using this interactive simulation. A PDF worksheet and a video tutorial are also...

Conduct virtual experiments with water, sound, and light waves to determine the sine wave and patterns created in each.