Deck 29: Light Waves

Question 1

The polarization axes of ordinary sunglasses are

A)vertical.
B)horizontal.
C)at right angles to each other.

Answer 1

vertical.

Question 2

Iridescent colors seen in the pearly luster of an abalone shell are due to

A)refraction.
B)diffraction.
C)dispersion.
D)polarization.
E)interference.

Answer 2

interference.

Question 3

Newton's rings are a demonstration of

A)refraction.
B)reflection.
C)dispersion.
D)polarization.
E)interference.

Answer 3

interference.

Question 4

Polarization is a property of

A)transverse waves.
B)longitudinal waves.
C)both
D)neither

Question 5

Diffraction is more pronounced through relatively

A)small openings.
B)large openings.
C)same for each

Question 6

Colors seen when gasoline forms a thin film on water are a demonstration of

A)refraction.
B)reflection.
C)dispersion.
D)polarization.
E)interference.

Question 7

The type of radio waves that is diffracted the most around small buildings are

A)AM.
B)FM.
C)Both diffract equally.

Question 8

For viewing tiny objects in a microscope,diffraction is

A)helpful.
B)a hindrance.
C)not a factor.

Question 9

Some double-pane airplane windows darken when the inner pane is rotated.The panes are

A)thin films.
B)Polaroid filters.
C)optical fibers.

Question 10

Diffraction is a result of

A)refraction.
B)reflection.
C)interference.
D)polarization.
E)dispersion.

Question 11

Interference is a property of

A)light waves.
B)sound waves.
C)water waves.
D)all of these
E)none of these

Question 12

The vibrational direction of the electron and the plane of polarization of the light it emits

A)are the same.
B)are at right angles to each other.
C)may or may not be at right angles to each other.
D)are independent of each other.

Question 13

Light will not pass through a pair of Polaroids when their axes are

A)parallel.
B)perpendicular.
C)45 degrees to each other.
D)two of these
E)all of these

Question 14

Waves diffract the most when their wavelength is

A)short.
B)long.
C)Both diffract the same.

Question 15

According to Huygens' principle,every point on a wave

A)is a diffraction source.
B)behaves as a source of new waves.
C)is the superposition of every other part of the wave.
D)all of these
E)none of these

Question 16

For radio reception,diffraction is

A)helpful.
B)a hindrance.
C)not a factor.

Question 17

The glare seen from water is largely

A)horizontally polarized.
B)vertically polarized.
C)unpolarized.

Question 18

To perceive greater detail a dolphin emits sounds of

A)lower frequency.
B)higher frequency.
C)greater intensity.
D)greater speed.
E)none of these

Question 19

Consider plane waves incident upon a barrier with a small opening.After passing through the opening,the waves

A)continue as plane waves.
B)fan out.
C)converge.
D)become polarized.
E)all of these

Question 20

The polarization axes of glasses for 3-D viewing are

A)vertical.
B)horizontal.
C)at right angles to each other.

Question 21

A hologram is simply a

A)complex diffraction grating.
B)thin sheet of non-cubic transparent crystals.
C)pair of semi-crossed polarization filters.
D)thin photographic film with microscopic images over the entire surface.
E)none of these

Question 22

Viewing exact duplicates of slides in the left and right positions of a stereo projector produces

A)depth.
B)no depth.

Question 23

A thin film appears blue when illuminated with white light.The color being cancelled by destructive interference is

A)red.
B)green.
C)white.
D)blue.
E)none of these

Question 24

Which of the following is a property of light waves,but not of sound waves?

A)frequency
B)wavelength
C)amplitude
D)polarization
E)none of these

Question 25

Interference colors in a soap bubble give evidence that the soap film

A)has two reflecting surfaces.
B)is thin.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 26

Magnification can be accomplished with a hologram when viewed with light that has a

A)longer wavelength than the original light.
B)shorter wavelength than the original light.
C)Holograms cannot be magnified.

Question 27

The function of polarizing filters in viewing 3-D slides or movies is to provide each eye

A)the ability to see parallax.
B)a balanced intensity.
C)an independent left or right-hand view.
D)a stereoscopic view.
E)with light polarized at right angles to each other.

Question 28

An ideal Polaroid will transmit 50% of unpolarized light incident on it.How much light is transmitted by two ideal Polaroids that are oriented with their axes parallel to each other?

A)0%
B)50%
C)100%
D)between 0% and 50%
E)between 50% and 100%

Question 29

An inventor proposes to equip an office with a polarized source of background music and let those who prefer not to hear it wear polarizing earplugs.His idea is

A)a good one - giving people a choice.
B)too expensive.
C)too much bother.
D)nonsense - you can't polarize a sound wave.

Question 30

Interference colors for light are analogous to

A)resonance for sound.
B)the sonic boom for sound.
C)partial tones for sound.
D)Fourier analysis for sound.
E)beats for sound.

Question 31

Consider the interference colors seen in a film of gasoline on a wet street.The function of the water is to provide a

A)means of spreading the gasoline into a thin film.
B)means of slowing the rapid evaporation of gasoline.
C)chemical bond with the gasoline.
D)second reflecting surface.
E)all of these

Question 32

When long-wavelength light is seen in the interference colors of a soap bubble,the wavelength being cancelled is relatively

A)long.
B)short.
C)neither

Question 33

The spacing of Newton's rings will be greater with

A)red light.
B)blue light.
C)white light.

Question 34

Holograms employ the principle of

A)diffraction.
B)interference.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 35

A property of non-cubic transparent crystals is that polarized light that travels through them

A)breaks up into two perpendicular planes.
B)is depolarized.
C)is rotated.
D)slows in speed.
E)none of these

Question 36

A property of non-cubic transparent crystals is that light travels through them

A)in mutually perpendicular directions.
B)without refracting.
C)and becomes polarized in the process.
D)at different speeds along different optic axes.
E)none of these

Question 37

The amount of light from an incandescent lamp that is transmitted through an ideal Polaroid filter is half,and through a real Polaroid filter is

A)less than half.
B)more than half.
C)half.

Question 38

Monochromatic light is light of a single

A)wavelength.
B)frequency.
C)color.
D)all of these
E)none of these

Question 39

A painting looks less flat when viewed with

A)one eye.
B)both eyes.
C)Polaroid glasses.

Question 40

When you view a soap film by white light coming from almost behind your head,you see a certain color.A friend on the other side of the film likely sees

A)the same color.
B)a different color.

Question 41

Because of absorption,a Polaroid will actually transmit 40% of incident unpolarized light.Two such Polaroids with their axes aligned will transmit

A)0%.
B)40%.
C)100%.
D)between 0% and 40%.
E)between 40% and 100%.

Question 42

Camera lenses coated with a layer of transparent material of the right thickness are almost completely non-reflective for light near the middle of the visible spectrum.They do,however,reflect a significant amount of

A)green.
B)red.
C)white.
D)violet.
E)red and violet.

Question 43

Interference effects are less visible for thick films because the reflected waves

A)from the bottom surface are too dim.
B)become too dispersed.
C)all end up in phase with each other.
D)are too displaced to interfere.

Question 44

The spacings between double-slit interference fringes is increased if the slits are

A)closer together.
B)farther apart.
C)narrower.
D)wider.
E)none of these