Physical ScienceElectromagnetic Wave Concepts Guide
This lesson is designed to be used in conjunction with the University of Colorado’s Physics 2000, Science Trek, Electromagnetic Waves Tutorial at:
Click on the link and follow the tutorial step by step. Use the interactive features to allow you to be able to answer the following sequence of questions and gain a great deal of knowledge about electromagnetic waves like light.
1)Name some different electromagnetic waves.
2)Click on the picture of Einstein (Right side of page, smoking pipe, and asking “How do we know this is true?” What does the Professor (blonde guy with brown jacket and big glasses) say connects all these things?
3)Go back to the first page. Look at the demo on different wavelengths. Move the slider with your mouse and notice how television, light and nuclear radiation are related. Set the slider somewhere within the range of visible light. Record the wavelength and the particular color at that wavelength.
4)Click on the link to water waves in the student’s (dark hair, necklace) question, “What’s the wave made of?” What do water waves and electromagnetic waves have in common?
5)Notice the Professor tells the student that, “The wave, or "disturbance," is in an invisible thing called the electric force field.” Click “Next”. What are the fundamental charged particles?
6)Follow the suggestions by the Professor, placing “electrons” all around the “proton”. What do you observe?
7)Do as the Professor suggests, “Now see what happens when you give the electron a little "throw" as you set it down. To do this, click-drag the mouse in any direction.” What do you observe?
8)What does the Professor call what you have just created?
9)Click Next. What does a charged particle create around it?
10)Click and place “electrons” around the “proton” (positive charge). Where do the lines of force point?
11)Click and place “electrons” around the “electron” (negative charge). Where do the lines of force point?
12)Press “L”. How do the lines of force relate to the entire force field?
13)Click “Next”. Use your mouse to make the electron bounce up and down. What do you observe?
14)Use your mouse to move the slide bar. What do you observe?
15)As frequency changes, what happens to wavelength?