Optics Lesson 1

Question 1

what is light?

Answer 1

a stream of photons, massless particles each travelling with wavelike properties @ speed of light

Question 2

what is a photon?

Answer 2

the smallest quantity of energy which can be transported

Question 3

properties of light?

Answer 3

travels in straight lines, does not need a medium, speed of light is consatnt in vacuum or air

Question 4

what is the electromagnetic sprectrum?

Answer 4

range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation

Question 5

why is it called visible light?

Answer 5

it is the only part of the spectrum that our eyes have evolved to detect.

Question 6

what wave lengths can we detect?

Answer 6

400-700nm micrometers

Question 7

what is a nm?

Answer 7

micrometer, 10(-6) of a meter

Question 8

what is the speed of light?

Answer 8

3.0x10(^8) m/s

Question 9

what is the magic triangle in order?

Answer 9

Up D Down C T

Question 10

what is the rectilinear propagation?

Answer 10

it is that light travels in a straight line as long as its travelling thru the same medium

Question 11

what is a ray?

Answer 11

the path taken by light energy

Question 12

what is a beam

Answer 12

a stream of light rays