8.3: Electromagnetic Spectrum

Physical Science for Educators Volume 2 · LibreTexts

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    From LibreTexts, under CC BY-NC-SA, as the source states it; its equations are written in TeX, which the PDF shows typeset. This page at LibreTexts.

    As discussed, the fact that wave speed can be written as the product of frequency and wavelength means that there are two ways to describe the electromagnetic spectrum. Below is an image showing the wavelength and corresponding frequencies for various types of electromagnetic radiation. Note the tiny slice of the entire spectrum that encompasses all visible light.

    clipboard_efcc03525e63853c0e3e0e4757c54e930.png

    EMR spectrum taken from OpenStax Physics and is licensed under CC-BY

    Wavelengths just longer than red light are called infrared and it is these waves that we experience as heat when standing in the sunshine, or near a fire. Wavelengths shorter than violet are called ultraviolet and are responsible for skin damage. Sunscreens are designed to absorb and reflect these damaging wavelengths.

    Although the most common way of describing light is in terms of the wavelength, this can be misleading. Recall that the frequency of the oscillations is set by the source. Since the frequency is set by the source and the wave speed is set by the medium, that means the wavelengths change as the wave speed changes. Because of this, the standard wavelengths used to describe light assume the light is traveling in vacuum.

    Example \(\PageIndex{1}\)

    The frequency of a microwave is 1010 Hertz. The speed of light in air is 3 x 108 meters per second. The speed of light in water is about 2.25 x 108 meters per second. Calculate the wavelength of microwaves in water and air.

    Solution

    vwave = \( \lambda \) f, so \( \lambda \) = \( \frac{\text v_{wave}}{f} \)

    For water: \( \lambda \) = \( \frac{2.25 \times 10^{8} \text {meters per second}}{10^{10} \text {Hertz}} \) = 2.25 millimeters

    For air: \( \lambda \) = \( \frac{3 \times 10^{8} \text {meters per second}}{10^{10} \text {Hertz}} \) = 3 millimeters

    An overview of electromagnetic waves, their means of production and some applications are summarized in the table below:

    clipboard_e711b2d5c012cdd45391fd615107b3cec.png

    Table of EM Radiation taken from OpenStax University Physics vol. 2 and is licensed under CC-BY

    8.3: Electromagnetic Spectrum is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Claude Mona.