Section 1 Electromagnetic Waves
What are electromagnetic waves? What do microwaves, cell phones, police radar, television, and X-rays have in common? All of them use electromagnetic waves Electromagnetic waves are transverse waves consisting of changing electric fields and changing magnetic fields
Electromagnetic Spectrum
What are electromagnetic waves? Electromagnetic waves differ from mechanical waves in how they are produced and how they travel How are they produced? Electromagnetic waves are produced by constantly changing fields (electric field and magnetic field) Changing electric fields produce changing magnetic fields and changing magnetic fields produce changing electric fields The fields regenerate each other!
What are electromagnetic waves? Electromagnetic waves can travel through a vacuum, or empty space, as well as through matter
Speed of Electromagnetic Waves Thunderstorm You see the lightening before you hear the thunder Therefore electromagnetic waves travel faster than sound waves In fact, electromagnetic waves travel at 300,000,000 m/s (3.00 x 10 8 m/s) Electromagnetic waves always travel this speed (in a vacuum)
Speed of Electromagnetic Waves The wavelength of light from a laser is 630 nm (630 x 10-9 m). What is the frequency of the light? Frequency = Speed/Wavelength *Have to convert the wavelength into meters!!! Frequency = 3.0 x 10 8 m/s = 4.8x10 14 Hz 630 x 10-9 m
Wavelength and Frequency Because the speed of ALL electromagnetic waves is 3.00 x 10 8 meters the wavelength is inversely proportional to the frequency. This means that if frequency increases, then wavelength decreases and visa versa.
Wave vs. Particle?? Light has properties of both waves and particles The particles of light are called photons The photons of higher frequency light carry more energy Blue light has a higher frequency than red light, and therefore more energy than red light 1800 s, Herschel Measured temperature of different colors of light
Intensity Intensity of light decreases as photons travel farther from the source Think of how a street light closer to you looks brighter than one further away they both are emitting the same amount of energy, but the one further away is less intense.
Section 2 The Electromagnetic Spectrum
The Electromagnetic Spectrum The full range of frequencies of electromagnetic radiation is called the electromagnetic spectrum Visible light is only a SMALL portion of the spectrum The electromagnetic spectrum includes radio waves, infrared rays, visible light, ultraviolet rays, X-rays, and gamma rays
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Radio Waves Longest wavelength (lowest frequency) Used in radio and television technology Music and voices are changed into electronic signals coded onto radio waves AM (amplitude modulation) FM (frequency modulation)
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Microwaves Are actually the shortest-wavelength radio waves When water or fat molecules in the food absorb microwaves, the thermal energy of these molecules increases Microwaves only penetrate a few cm into the food Microwaves are also what make your cell phones work! Process is much the same as how radios work
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Radar Radio detection and ranging Sends out short bursts of radio waves, measures the time it takes for them to return (much like sonar) Uses the Doppler effect to calculate speed
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Infrared Red Infrared rays are used as a source of heat and to discover areas of heat differences You can t see infrared, but you feel it has heat Warmer objects give off more infrared radiation than cooler objects Detect troubles in power lines, find Earthquake victims
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Visible Light Each wavelength in the visible spectrum corresponds to a specific frequency and has a particular color Birds can see ultraviolet light!
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Ultraviolet Rays (UV) Exposure to ultraviolet rays helps your skin produce vitamin D (which helps your body absorb calcium) Excessive exposure can cause sunburn, wrinkles, and skin cancer (melanoma)
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum X-Rays Teeth and bone (more dense) absorb X-rays, while the X-rays pass through the softer tissues leaving an image on a film Dangerous in large amounts Airports use X-rays to see inside of luggage
Uses of the Electromagnetic Spectrum Gamma Rays Safe in VERY tiny amounts, otherwise deadly Used in radiation therapy to kill cancer cells (chemotherapy) Pipelines are checked for rust or cracks with machines that emit gamma rays