Wave Diffraction Effect Via Obstacle

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Diffraction
When a wave hits an obstacle it does not simply go straight past,

it bends round the obstacle. The same type of effect occurs at a
hole - the waves spread out the other side of the hole. This
phenomenon is known as diffraction and examples of the
diffraction of plane waves are shown in Figure 1.
The effects of diffraction are much more noticeable if the size of

the obstacle is small (a few wavelengths across), while a given
size of obstacle will diffract a wave of long wavelength more than
a shorter one.
Diffraction can be easily demonstrated with sound waves or

microwaves. It is quite easy to hear a sound even if there is an
obstacle in the direct line between the source and your ears. By
using the 2.8 cm microwave apparatus owned by many schools
very good diffraction effects may be observed with obstacles a few
centimetres across.
One of the most powerful pieces of evidence for light being some
form of wave motion is that it also shows diffraction. The problem
with light, and that which led Newton to reject the wave theory is
that the wavelength is very small and therefore diffraction effects
are hard to observe. You can observe the diffraction of light,
however, if you know just where to look.
The coloured rings round a street light in frosty weather, the

coloured bands viewed by reflection from a record and the
spreading of light round your eyelashes are all diffraction effects.
Looking through the material of a stretched pair of tights at a
small torch bulb will also show very good diffraction. A laser will
also show good diffraction effects over large distances because of
the coherence of laser light.
Diffraction is essentially the effect of removing some of the

information from a wave front; the new wave front will be altered
by the obstacle or aperture. Huygens' theory explained this
satisfactorily.
Grimaldi first recorded the diffraction of light in 1665 but the real
credit for its scientific study must go to Fresnel, Poisson and
Arago, working in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth
centuries.
Fresnel and Fraunhofer diffraction
We can define two distinct types of diffraction:
(a) Fresnel diffraction is produced when light from a point source meets an obstacle, the waves are
spherical and the pattern observed is a fringed image of the object.
(b) Fraunhofer diffraction occurs with plane wave-fronts with the object effectively at infinity. The
pattern is in a particular direction and is a fringed image of the source.
Fresnel diffraction
Fresnel diffraction can be observed with the minimum of apparatus but the mathematics are
complex. We will therefore only treat it experimentally here.
If a razor blade is placed between the observer and a point source of monochromatic light, dark and
bright diffraction fringes can be seen in the edges of the shadow. The same effects can be produced
with a pinhead, when a spot of light will be seen in the centre of the shadow.
Fresnel was unhappy about Newton's explanation of diffraction in terms of the attraction of the light
particles by the particles of the solid, because diffraction was found to be independent of the density
of the obstacle: a spider's web, for example, gave the same diffraction pattern as a platinum wire of
the same thickness. The prediction and subsequent discovery of a bright spot within the centre of the
shadow of a small steel ball was final proof that light was indeed a wave motion.
If the intensity of light is plotted against distance for points close to the shadow edge results like
those shown in Figure 2 will be obtained.
Fresnel diffraction with a double slit will produce two single slit patterns superimposed on one
another. This is exactly what happens in the Young's slit experiment: the diffraction effects are
observed as well as those due to the interference of the two sets of waves.
Student investigation
This investigation takes the form of two experiments with microwaves. Use the 2.8 cm
wavelength microwaves to investigate the diffraction from a single slit when the width of
the slit is reduced to close to, and below, the wavelength of the microwaves. Plot graphs
of both the position of the first maximum and the magnitude of the first maximum against
slit width.
It has been stated that the flatness required for a reflec氟or depends on the wavelength of
the radiation that it is required to reflect. Using the metal polarisation grille supplied with
the microwaves kit, investigate this claim. Make a set of grids from wire mesh of different
grades and record how the reflected intensity varies with mesh size.
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HOME > AGE 16-19 > WAVE PROPERTIES > DIFFRACTION > DIFFRACTION

When a wave hits an obstacle it does not simply go straight past,

The effects of diffraction are much more noticeable if the size of

Diffraction can be easily demonstrated with sound waves or

The coloured rings round a street light in frosty weather, the

Diffraction is essentially the effect of removing some of the

A VERSION IN WORD IS AVAILABLE ON THE SCHOOLPHYSICS USB

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