My friend and I are debating whether is polarization of diffraction. Can somone please tell us what's the right answer and why?
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Diffraction is a wave effect (a wave passing through a narrow slit or past a fine object with dimensions comparable to the wavelength). Diffraction occurs for both longitudinal and transverse waves - sound can be diffracted which is why you can hear around corners and don't need to be in the line-of-sight of a person to hear them.
Polarization only affects transverse waves because the 'vibration' is perpendicular to the propagation direction. Polarization is the forcing of a wave to have its vibration in a particular direction, which you can achieve for transverse waves because some component of the vibration (either x or y components, or cosine and sine components) lies in the direction of the polarization axis.
So, in other words, polarization is the right answer!
Polarization only affects transverse waves because the 'vibration' is perpendicular to the propagation direction. Polarization is the forcing of a wave to have its vibration in a particular direction, which you can achieve for transverse waves because some component of the vibration (either x or y components, or cosine and sine components) lies in the direction of the polarization axis.
So, in other words, polarization is the right answer!
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Light is considered a transverse wave because the constituent fields are disturbed in directions that are perpendicular to the overall propagation direction of light.
Light is what I like to call, a "double transverse wave". It has a disturbance to the electric field, and a corresponding disturbance to the magnetic field, both of which are perpendicular to each other, and perpendicular to the propagation direction. At any given instant and position, the light wave varies in value the strengths of these two force fields. Think of the electric field as "surfing", and the magnetic field as "snaking".
Transverse waves are defined to be a disturbance that is perpendicular to the direction of the wave.
Longitudinal waves are defined to be a disturbance that is parallel with the direction of the wave.
Definitely, polarization is a property unique to transverse waves, not held by longitudinal waves. The polarization of a light wave is whether or not the wave's electric is surfing, snaking, somewhere in-between, or if it is a mix of all (unpolarized). Longitudinal waves cannot be polarized, because the only option for the direction of medium disturbance is ALONG the direction of the wave.
Diffraction works for all waves, and you can observe it for sound as well. In fact, better than light. Sound waves can diffract, that is why a person can walk outside the room, talk, and you can still hear him just as well as if he were in the room, even though you are in the "shadow" of the walls of the room, and the sound must bend.
Light diffraction is very subtle, because light wavelengths are on the order of nanometers, unlike sound wavelength being on the order of meters.
Light is what I like to call, a "double transverse wave". It has a disturbance to the electric field, and a corresponding disturbance to the magnetic field, both of which are perpendicular to each other, and perpendicular to the propagation direction. At any given instant and position, the light wave varies in value the strengths of these two force fields. Think of the electric field as "surfing", and the magnetic field as "snaking".
Transverse waves are defined to be a disturbance that is perpendicular to the direction of the wave.
Longitudinal waves are defined to be a disturbance that is parallel with the direction of the wave.
Definitely, polarization is a property unique to transverse waves, not held by longitudinal waves. The polarization of a light wave is whether or not the wave's electric is surfing, snaking, somewhere in-between, or if it is a mix of all (unpolarized). Longitudinal waves cannot be polarized, because the only option for the direction of medium disturbance is ALONG the direction of the wave.
Diffraction works for all waves, and you can observe it for sound as well. In fact, better than light. Sound waves can diffract, that is why a person can walk outside the room, talk, and you can still hear him just as well as if he were in the room, even though you are in the "shadow" of the walls of the room, and the sound must bend.
Light diffraction is very subtle, because light wavelengths are on the order of nanometers, unlike sound wavelength being on the order of meters.