Light

1) Properties of light
2) Reflection
3) Colours

Part 1 Properties of Light

Light travels in straight lines:

Laser

Light travels VERY FAST around

300,000 kilometres per second.
At this speed it can
go around the world 8
times in one second.

Light travels much faster than sound. For example:

1) Thunder and lightning

start at the same time,
but we will see the
lightning first.

2) When a starting pistol

is fired we see the
smoke first and then
hear the bang.

We see things because they

reflect light into our eyes:

Homework

Luminous and non-luminous objects

A luminous object is one that produces light.
A non-luminous object is one that reflects light.
Luminous objects

Reflectors

-The Sun
- Lamps
- Lights
- Lasers
- Campfires

-The Moon
- Mirrors
- People
- Objects

Shadows
Shadows are places where light is blocked:

Rays of light

Out of the Darkness

-If the light source is small compared to the size of the object,
then the shadow will be SHARP
-If the light source is of comparable size to the object, then the
shadow will be fuzzy. The dark inner region is called the UMBRA;
the grey region is called the PENUMBRA.

Properties of Light summary

1) Light travels in straight lines
2) Light travels much faster than sound
3) We see things because they reflect light
into our eyes
4) Shadows are formed when light is blocked
by an object

Part 2 - Reflection
Reflection from a mirror:
Normal
Reflected ray

Incident ray

Angle of
incidence

Angle of
reflection

Mirror

The Law of Reflection

Angle of incidence = Angle of reflection
In other words, light gets reflected from a surface at
THE SAME ANGLE it hits it.

The
same !!!

Clear vs. Diffuse Reflection

Smooth, shiny surfaces
have a clear reflection:

Rough, dull surfaces have

a diffuse reflection.

Diffuse reflection is when

light is scattered in
different directions

Using mirrors
Two examples:

2) A car headlight
1) A periscope

Flat Mirrors

Image is VIRTUAL, UPRIGHT, UNMAGNIFIED

Spherical Mirrors - Concave

Image is REAL, INVERTED, and DEMAGNIFIED !!!

Spherical Mirrors Concave

Object Inside the Focal Point

Image is VIRTUAL, UPRIGHT, and MAGNIFIED

Spherical Mirrors - Convex

Image is VIRTUAL, UPRIGHT, and DEMAGNIFIED

Colour
White light is not a single colour; it is made
up of a mixture of the seven colours of the
rainbow.
We can demonstrate this by
splitting white light with a
prism:

This is how rainbows are

formed: sunlight is split up
by raindrops.

The colours of the rainbow:

Remember: Roy G. Biv !!!

Red
Orange
Yellow
Green
Blue
Indigo
Violet

Light from the Sun

The light from the sun
contains a grand mixture
of electromagnetic waves
of varying frequency (i.e.
wavelength)
The spectrum of light is
characteristic of the
TEMPERATURE of the
sun!

Wavelengths of Light
Red Light nm
Green Light - nm
Blue Light - nm

Adding colours
White light can be split up to make separate colours.
These colours can be added together again.
The primary colours of light are red, blue and green:

Adding blue and red

makes magenta
(purple)
Adding red
and green
makes yellow

Adding blue and

green makes cyan
(light blue)
Adding all
three makes
white again

Seeing colour
The colour an object appears depends on the colours
of light it reflects.
For example, a red book only reflects red light:

White
light

Only red light

is reflected

A pair of purple pants, in addition to being ugly, would

reflect purple light

(or red and blue, as purple is made up of red and blue):

Purple light

A white hat would reflect all seven colours:

White
light

Using coloured light

If we look at a coloured object in coloured
light we see something different. For
example, consider the outfit below I
mean, from a physics standpoint, not as a
fashion choice:
Shirt looks red
White
light
Shorts look blue

In different colours of light this kit would look different:

Red
light

Shirt looks red

Shorts look black

Shirt looks black

Blue
light
Shorts look blue

Using filters
Filters can be used to block out different colours of light:

Red
Filter

Magenta
Filter