A report on Light, Wavelength and Spectrum

A triangular prism dispersing a beam of white light. The longer wavelengths (red) and the shorter wavelengths (blue) are separated.

The wavelength of a sine wave, λ, can be measured between any two points with the same phase, such as between crests (on top), or troughs (on bottom), or corresponding zero crossings as shown.

The electromagnetic spectrum, with the visible portion highlighted

Sinusoidal standing waves in a box that constrains the end points to be nodes will have an integer number of half wavelengths fitting in the box.

Diagram illustrating the electromagnetic spectrum

A standing wave (black) depicted as the sum of two propagating waves traveling in opposite directions (red and blue)

Beam of sun light inside the cavity of Rocca ill'Abissu at Fondachelli-Fantina, Sicily

Wavelength is decreased in a medium with slower propagation.

$Due to refraction, the straw dipped in water appears bent and the ruler scale compressed when viewed from a shallow angle.$

$Refraction: upon entering a medium where its speed is lower, the wave changes direction.$

A Nolan chart of the political spectrum using (red leftism and blue rightism) coding

Hong Kong illuminated by colourful artificial lighting.

Separation of colors by a prism (click for animation)

Various local wavelengths on a crest-to-crest basis in an ocean wave approaching shore

A sinusoidal wave travelling in a nonuniform medium, with loss

$Thomas Young's sketch of a double-slit experiment showing diffraction. Young's experiments supported the theory that light consists of waves.$

A wave on a line of atoms can be interpreted according to a variety of wavelengths.

Wavelength of a periodic but non-sinusoidal waveform.

Pattern of light intensity on a screen for light passing through two slits. The labels on the right refer to the difference of the path lengths from the two slits, which are idealized here as point sources.

$Diffraction pattern of a double slit has a single-slit envelope.$

Relationship between wavelength, angular wavelength, and other wave properties.

Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 terahertz, between the infrared (with longer wavelengths) and the ultraviolet (with shorter wavelengths).

- Light

The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors in visible light after passing through a prism.

- Spectrum

The primary properties of light are intensity, propagation direction, frequency or wavelength spectrum and polarization.

- Light

Examples of waves are sound waves, light, water waves and periodic electrical signals in a conductor.

- Wavelength

The range of wavelengths or frequencies for wave phenomena is called a spectrum.

- Wavelength

Soon the term referred to a plot of light intensity or power as a function of frequency or wavelength, also known as a spectral density plot.

- Spectrum

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Electromagnetic spectrum

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A diagram of the electromagnetic spectrum, showing various properties across the range of frequencies and wavelengths

Plot of Earth's atmospheric opacity to various wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation. This is the surface-to-space opacity, the atmosphere is transparent to longwave radio transmissions within the troposphere but opaque to space due to the ionosphere.

Plot of atmospheric opacity for terrestrial to terrestrial transmission showing the molecules responsible for some of the resonances

The amount of penetration of UV relative to altitude in Earth's ozone

The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of frequencies (the spectrum) of electromagnetic radiation and their respective wavelengths and photon energies.

This frequency range is divided into separate bands, and the electromagnetic waves within each frequency band are called by different names; beginning at the low frequency (long wavelength) end of the spectrum these are: radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, X-rays, and gamma rays at the high-frequency (short wavelength) end.