Solution

Physics 214 Problem 3 Diffraction Grating Week 3

5 cm screen 5 cm Face view of the grating

grating

A diffraction grating consisting of N slits produces a second-order maximum for red light ( = 630 nm) at = 35. a) Determine the spacing between the slits of the grating. sin = m/d, so d = 2 0.63 m /sin(35) = 2.2 m = 2.210-6 m. b) Assuming a total area of 5 x 5 cm2 as shown, how many slits (lines) are there in the grating? N = 0.05 m / 2.210-6 m = 22700 slits. c) Assuming that the grating is uniformly illuminated over a third of its width, how wide an angular width, , does the zeroth-order maximum have (see figure)? To calculate this, you first need to find the phase angle = (between the phasors from adjacent slits) corresponding to the first minimum as shown below. To see what the formula is for several slits, there are two approaches (you can choose which to use): Phasors: First draw a phasor diagram for the case of 8 slits. Here is some help: Draw a phasor diagram for this angle, . What is 8d for one phasor here?
1

The 8-slit phasor diagram for the first zero is:

That is, the phase difference between adjacent slits is o = 2/8. In the N-slit case, = 2/N in order to form an N sided polygon.

Algebraic: solve the N-slit intensity formula for the first zero in , then solve for the

sin( N / 2) corresponding value of : I N = I1 . sin( / 2)

The numerator above will go to zero when No/2 = , or o = 2/N, the same result as above.

Now relate to . Dont forget that we want the zero-to-zero width, i.e., corresponds to 2 o. Also, dont forget that only a third of the grating is illuminated. Since only a third the grating is illuminated, the relevant N = 7566 slits. From = 2 (/) = 2 (d sin )/, we have: sin o = (o/2)(/d) = (1/)(/d). Since o is << 1, we can use the small-angle approximation: o (/Nd) = 0.633 m /(7566 x 2.2 m) = 3.8 x 10-5 rad. The angular width is then: = 2 o = 7.6 x 10-5 radians = (4.4 x 10-3) d) Can this grating (fully illuminated) be used to distinguish two lasers, one at 630 nm, the other at 631 nm? To distinguish different wavelengths, we need Rayleighs criteria: / > 1/mN . Here we certainly have 1/630 > 2/22700, so the answer is yes. Even if we illuminate a third of the grating, we can easily resolve these wavelengths in second order (and even in first order!). e) How many principal orders of 630-nm light can be seen with this grating? (Only count on one side, and do not count the central [0th-order] peak.) sin can never be more than 1, so from sin = m/d, it must be that m d, or m d/ = 2.2 m/0.63 m = 3.5 mmax = 3.