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Same double-slit assembly (0.7 mm between slits); in top image, one slit is closed. In the single-slit image, a diffraction pattern (the faint spots on either side of the main band) forms due to the nonzero width of the slit. This diffraction pattern is also seen in the double-slit image, but with many smaller interference fringes.
Graph and image of single-slit diffraction. As an example, an exact equation can now be derived for the intensity of the diffraction pattern as a function of angle in the case of single-slit diffraction. A mathematical representation of Huygens' principle can be used to start an equation.
The sine and tangent small-angle approximations are used in relation to the double-slit experiment or a diffraction grating to develop simplified equations like the following, where y is the distance of a fringe from the center of maximum light intensity, m is the order of the fringe, D is the distance between the slits and projection screen ...
Geometry of two slit diffraction Two slit interference using a red laser. Assume we have two long slits illuminated by a plane wave of wavelength λ. The slits are in the z = 0 plane, parallel to the y axis, separated by a distance S and are symmetrical about the origin. The width of the slits is small compared with the wavelength.
Thomas Young's sketch of two-slit diffraction for water ripple tank from his 1807 Lectures [6]: 139 . The effects of diffraction of light were first carefully observed and characterized by Francesco Maria Grimaldi, who also coined the term diffraction, from the Latin diffringere, 'to break into pieces', referring to light breaking up into different directions. [7]
Graph and image of single-slit diffraction. The width of the slit is W. The Fraunhofer diffraction pattern is shown in the image together with a plot of the intensity vs. angle θ. [10] The pattern has maximum intensity at θ = 0, and a series of peaks of decreasing intensity. Most of the diffracted light falls between the first minima.
Unlike the modern double-slit experiment, Young's experiment reflects sunlight (using a steering mirror) through a small hole, and splits the thin beam in half using a paper card. [6] [8] [9] He also mentions the possibility of passing light through two slits in his description of the experiment: Modern illustration of the double-slit experiment
The N-slit interferometer is an extension of the double-slit interferometer also known as Young's double-slit interferometer. One of the first known uses of N-slit arrays in optics was illustrated by Newton. [1] In the first part of the twentieth century, Michelson [2] described various cases of N-slit diffraction.