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University Physics Volume 3

3.3 Multiple-Slit Interference

University Physics Volume 33.3 Multiple-Slit Interference
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Table of contents
  1. Preface
  2. Optics
    1. 1 The Nature of Light
      1. Introduction
      2. 1.1 The Propagation of Light
      3. 1.2 The Law of Reflection
      4. 1.3 Refraction
      5. 1.4 Total Internal Reflection
      6. 1.5 Dispersion
      7. 1.6 Huygens’s Principle
      8. 1.7 Polarization
      9. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
    2. 2 Geometric Optics and Image Formation
      1. Introduction
      2. 2.1 Images Formed by Plane Mirrors
      3. 2.2 Spherical Mirrors
      4. 2.3 Images Formed by Refraction
      5. 2.4 Thin Lenses
      6. 2.5 The Eye
      7. 2.6 The Camera
      8. 2.7 The Simple Magnifier
      9. 2.8 Microscopes and Telescopes
      10. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
    3. 3 Interference
      1. Introduction
      2. 3.1 Young's Double-Slit Interference
      3. 3.2 Mathematics of Interference
      4. 3.3 Multiple-Slit Interference
      5. 3.4 Interference in Thin Films
      6. 3.5 The Michelson Interferometer
      7. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
    4. 4 Diffraction
      1. Introduction
      2. 4.1 Single-Slit Diffraction
      3. 4.2 Intensity in Single-Slit Diffraction
      4. 4.3 Double-Slit Diffraction
      5. 4.4 Diffraction Gratings
      6. 4.5 Circular Apertures and Resolution
      7. 4.6 X-Ray Diffraction
      8. 4.7 Holography
      9. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
  3. Modern Physics
    1. 5 Relativity
      1. Introduction
      2. 5.1 Invariance of Physical Laws
      3. 5.2 Relativity of Simultaneity
      4. 5.3 Time Dilation
      5. 5.4 Length Contraction
      6. 5.5 The Lorentz Transformation
      7. 5.6 Relativistic Velocity Transformation
      8. 5.7 Doppler Effect for Light
      9. 5.8 Relativistic Momentum
      10. 5.9 Relativistic Energy
      11. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
    2. 6 Photons and Matter Waves
      1. Introduction
      2. 6.1 Blackbody Radiation
      3. 6.2 Photoelectric Effect
      4. 6.3 The Compton Effect
      5. 6.4 Bohr’s Model of the Hydrogen Atom
      6. 6.5 De Broglie’s Matter Waves
      7. 6.6 Wave-Particle Duality
      8. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
    3. 7 Quantum Mechanics
      1. Introduction
      2. 7.1 Wave Functions
      3. 7.2 The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle
      4. 7.3 The SchrÓ§dinger Equation
      5. 7.4 The Quantum Particle in a Box
      6. 7.5 The Quantum Harmonic Oscillator
      7. 7.6 The Quantum Tunneling of Particles through Potential Barriers
      8. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
    4. 8 Atomic Structure
      1. Introduction
      2. 8.1 The Hydrogen Atom
      3. 8.2 Orbital Magnetic Dipole Moment of the Electron
      4. 8.3 Electron Spin
      5. 8.4 The Exclusion Principle and the Periodic Table
      6. 8.5 Atomic Spectra and X-rays
      7. 8.6 Lasers
      8. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
    5. 9 Condensed Matter Physics
      1. Introduction
      2. 9.1 Types of Molecular Bonds
      3. 9.2 Molecular Spectra
      4. 9.3 Bonding in Crystalline Solids
      5. 9.4 Free Electron Model of Metals
      6. 9.5 Band Theory of Solids
      7. 9.6 Semiconductors and Doping
      8. 9.7 Semiconductor Devices
      9. 9.8 Superconductivity
      10. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
    6. 10 Nuclear Physics
      1. Introduction
      2. 10.1 Properties of Nuclei
      3. 10.2 Nuclear Binding Energy
      4. 10.3 Radioactive Decay
      5. 10.4 Nuclear Reactions
      6. 10.5 Fission
      7. 10.6 Nuclear Fusion
      8. 10.7 Medical Applications and Biological Effects of Nuclear Radiation
      9. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
    7. 11 Particle Physics and Cosmology
      1. Introduction
      2. 11.1 Introduction to Particle Physics
      3. 11.2 Particle Conservation Laws
      4. 11.3 Quarks
      5. 11.4 Particle Accelerators and Detectors
      6. 11.5 The Standard Model
      7. 11.6 The Big Bang
      8. 11.7 Evolution of the Early Universe
      9. Chapter Review
        1. Key Terms
        2. Key Equations
        3. Summary
        4. Conceptual Questions
        5. Problems
        6. Additional Problems
        7. Challenge Problems
  4. A | Units
  5. B | Conversion Factors
  6. C | Fundamental Constants
  7. D | Astronomical Data
  8. E | Mathematical Formulas
  9. F | Chemistry
  10. G | The Greek Alphabet
  11. Answer Key
    1. Chapter 1
    2. Chapter 2
    3. Chapter 3
    4. Chapter 4
    5. Chapter 5
    6. Chapter 6
    7. Chapter 7
    8. Chapter 8
    9. Chapter 9
    10. Chapter 10
    11. Chapter 11
  12. Index

Learning Objectives

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

  • Describe the locations and intensities of secondary maxima for multiple-slit interference

Analyzing the interference of light passing through two slits lays out the theoretical framework of interference and gives us a historical insight into Thomas Young’s experiments. However, much of the modern-day application of slit interference uses not just two slits but many, approaching infinity for practical purposes. The key optical element is called a diffraction grating, an important tool in optical analysis, which we discuss in detail in Diffraction. Here, we start the analysis of multiple-slit interference by taking the results from our analysis of the double slit (N=2N=2) and extending it to configurations with three, four, and much larger numbers of slits.

Figure 3.9 shows the simplest case of multiple-slit interference, with three slits, or N=3N=3. The spacing between slits is d, and the path length difference between adjacent slits is dsinθdsinθ, same as the case for the double slit. What is new is that the path length difference for the first and the third slits is 2dsinθ2dsinθ. The condition for constructive interference is the same as for the double slit, that is

dsinθ=mλ.dsinθ=mλ.

When this condition is met, 2dsinθ2dsinθ is automatically a multiple of λλ, so all three rays combine constructively, and the bright fringes that occur here are called principal maxima. But what happens when the path length difference between adjacent slits is only λ/2λ/2? We can think of the first and second rays as interfering destructively, but the third ray remains unaltered. Instead of obtaining a dark fringe, or a minimum, as we did for the double slit, we see a secondary maximum with intensity lower than the principal maxima.

Picture shows interference with three slits separated by distance d. Rays 1, 2, and 3 travel through the slits at the angles Theta.
Figure 3.9 Interference with three slits. Different pairs of emerging rays can combine constructively or destructively at the same time, leading to secondary maxima.

In general, for N slits, these secondary maxima occur whenever an unpaired ray is present that does not go away due to destructive interference. This occurs at (N−2)(N−2) evenly spaced positions between the principal maxima. The amplitude of the electromagnetic wave is correspondingly diminished to 1/N1/N of the wave at the principal maxima, and the light intensity, being proportional to the square of the wave amplitude, is diminished to 1/N21/N2 of the intensity compared to the principal maxima. As Figure 3.10 shows, a dark fringe is located between every maximum (principal or secondary). As N grows larger and the number of bright and dark fringes increase, the widths of the maxima become narrower due to the closely located neighboring dark fringes. Because the total amount of light energy remains unaltered, narrower maxima require that each maximum reaches a correspondingly higher intensity.

Picture A shows a graph for the interference fringe patterns for two, three and four slits. As the number of slits increases, more secondary maxima appear, but the principal maxima become narrower. Picture B shows photographs of fringe patterns for two, three and four slits. As the number of slits increases, more secondary maxima appear, but the principal maxima become brighter.
Figure 3.10 Interference fringe patterns for two, three and four slits. As the number of slits increases, more secondary maxima appear, but the principal maxima become brighter and narrower. (a) Graph and (b) photographs of fringe patterns.
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