Huygens–Fresnel principle
Okay kiddo, let's talk about Huygens-Fresnel principle.
Imagine you are at a beach and you throw a pebble into the water. What happens then?
Circular waves start spreading outwards from where the pebble hit the water. These waves are also called ripple waves.
Now imagine you have a very small hole in a wall and sunlight is shining through the hole onto a screen. What do you see on the screen?
You might see a bright spot in the middle and some fainter spots surrounding it. These are called diffraction patterns.
So what do waves on the water and diffraction patterns have to do with Huygens-Fresnel principle?
Well, Huygens-Fresnel principle says that when waves pass through an opening or around an obstacle, they can be thought of as a bunch of tiny wavelets or ripples that spread out in all directions.
This is similar to the ripple waves on the water. The waves coming through the hole in the wall are like the pebble hitting the water. The diffraction patterns on the screen are caused by the interference of these tiny wavelets.
This principle is used in lots of fields including optics, which is the study of light. It helps us understand how light behaves when it passes through or around objects.
So in summary, Huygens-Fresnel principle tells us that waves can be thought of as a bunch of tiny wavelets spreading out in all directions when they pass through an opening or around an obstacle. Pretty cool, right?
Imagine you are at a beach and you throw a pebble into the water. What happens then?
Circular waves start spreading outwards from where the pebble hit the water. These waves are also called ripple waves.
Now imagine you have a very small hole in a wall and sunlight is shining through the hole onto a screen. What do you see on the screen?
You might see a bright spot in the middle and some fainter spots surrounding it. These are called diffraction patterns.
So what do waves on the water and diffraction patterns have to do with Huygens-Fresnel principle?
Well, Huygens-Fresnel principle says that when waves pass through an opening or around an obstacle, they can be thought of as a bunch of tiny wavelets or ripples that spread out in all directions.
This is similar to the ripple waves on the water. The waves coming through the hole in the wall are like the pebble hitting the water. The diffraction patterns on the screen are caused by the interference of these tiny wavelets.
This principle is used in lots of fields including optics, which is the study of light. It helps us understand how light behaves when it passes through or around objects.
So in summary, Huygens-Fresnel principle tells us that waves can be thought of as a bunch of tiny wavelets spreading out in all directions when they pass through an opening or around an obstacle. Pretty cool, right?