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Light

Work in Progress: Resources to be added

TopicResources
Speed of Light
Reflection and RefractionYes ( , )
Colour and Dispersion
Optical instruments
Diffraction and interference
Polarisation
Electromagnetic spectrum

In-Depth Resources: Websites on many topics

Project LITE – Light inquiry Through Experiments

This US funded website is a set of applets and apps on various aspects of Light, some of which were designed to be used in conjunction with simple and cheap optical materials. Aspects include: spectra, colour mixing, visual effects, illusions and binocular vision.

International Year of Light – Resources

The UN website for the International Year of Light and light based technologies has a range of resources under the headings: i) Why light matters, ii) Learning about light, iii) Hands on involvement, iv) Cosmic light, v) Light for development and vi) Science stories. There is also a catalogue of 77 images with captions which can be downloaded.

The International Day of Light

The website has an extensive compilation of resources that cover the years, Prep to Year 12.  Select ‘Resources’ and check out ‘Activities’ and ‘Videos’.  The activities section includes a link to a 165 page lab manual for teachers. In the ‘Images’ section there is information about an international Photo Contest.  Submissions from previous contests can be viewed

Exploring Light – Hands on Activities and Strategies A free Online Course

This is an Exploratorium Teacher Institute (US) https://www.exploratorium.edu/education/teacher-institute online professional development course open to any science teacher (particularly middle or high school level) and light enthusiast. Designed as a hands-on workshop, the course explores topics and strategies that teachers can use to help their students become active investigators of light. It is done with Coursera, a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course). There is no cost and the course is offered at regular intervals.

Optics for Kids

This website of the American Optical Society which has a diverse range of resources for students of all ages. The optical illusions page is extensive with an impressive refraction effect at the bottom of the list.

Exploring Light with Optics

This package of materials from Perimeter Institute enables students to investigate reflection, refraction, and lenses through mini-activities, then explore human vision, telescopes, optics equations, fibre optics, and lasers through deeper activities – including a design challenge to build a laser maze. A short video examines the electromagnetic spectrum and telescopes.
The inquiry-based activities have a focus on Years 7 – 10 levels. With some easy adaptations, teachers can broaden the reach of activities to include higher or lower year levels.

Optical Society of America

This website has a diverse range of useful material including: posters, optical illusions, historical section, biographies, classroom activities, podcasts, etc.

Optometrists Association of Australia

Their website has general information on a range of topics related to the Eye and to vision.

Laser Classroom: Free Light, Laser and Optics Lessons and Experiments

The package has 32 activities covering primary, middle school and senior physics. 21 of these are relevant to senior physics. Quote: The free downloadable optics lessons bring abstract concepts into focus and introduce the amazing science, technology, engineering and math of the basics like reflection, refraction and diffraction as well as applications like spectroscopy, invisibility and energy. You need to register to access the material.

Introductory Light Activities 191 kB

A set of a large number of short practical activities intended to stimulate students’ curiosity about what light is and what it can do. The students generate questions that they would like answers to. These become the basis of a later assessment task at the end of the unit in which the student can choose their own set of questions to answer. Prepared by Vicphysics Teachers’ Network.

Speed of Light: Activities

Resources from Physics Teachers’ Conferences

Files by Louise Mason from St Leonard’s College on the kinaesthetic approach to waves and optics.

Reflection and Refraction: Context

Observing a real image – Exploratorium video

The Exploratorium has a 2 metre diameter concave mirror. Observers can see their inverted real image. The video shows a tour guide talking to students. He shines a torch on a student’s forehead and you see the bright spot on the forehead of the image. He then shines the torch on the forehead of the image and the student’s forehead is illuminated. Very powerful, the students are overwhelmed

Reflection and Refraction: Activities

Reflection and Refraction of Waves by Huygen’s principle

The applet by Walter Fendt very effectively describes reflection and refraction of waves. It features several stages. First, a straight wave front approaches a boundary at an angle, 2nd as the wave front progressively hits dots on the boundary, circular waves are created on both sides of the boundary, 3rd A repeat of stage 2, but with a line connecting the fronts of reflecting circular waves, and same for the refracting waves, 4th A repeat of stage 3, but with an overlay of the incident, reflected and refracted rays, showing the various wavefronts at right angles to the direction of their ray, 5th this is followed by a series of incident wave fronts. The indices of refraction can be changed, as well as the angle of incidence. There is a text box to explain each stage. Total Internal Reflection can also be demonstrated. A most impressive applet.Crown Glass in Glycerol 11.3 MB

Crown Glass in Glycerol 11.3 MB MOV. Crown glass block disappears in glycerol. Ending missing. 48 sec Quick time file.
Mirages in a bottle 843 kB pdf A seven page article on experiments to demonstrate mirages.
Short Pracs by Colin Hopkins
Resources from Physics Teachers’ Conferences

Files by Spiros Liacos from Cheltenham Secondary College

Using a smartphone camera to explore ray optics

An article from America Journal of Physics.  This paper shows how to use a smartphone camera as an optics lab at a wide range of levels

Reflection and Refraction: Assessment

Light Revision 2 24.6 kB

Revision Notes on Colour, Refraction, Total Internal Reflection and Image Formation with Lenses.

Light Test 2 23 kB

Test on Colour, Refraction, Total Internal Reflection and Image Formation with Lenses.

Test questions on Light as a Wave 22 kB

Test questions generated by submitting the dot points to ChatGPT.

Reflection and Refraction: Websites

Light Field Camera – Shoot now, focus later

The design for a light field camera was developed in 1908 by Gabriel Lippmann, a French physicist. In that year he also received the Nobel Prize for Physics for his earlier work on colour photography. A normal camera only records the total amount of light entering a point on the screen, the directional component of the light has been lost. The light field camera has an array of microlenses near the focal plane of the main camera lens that enable this information to be recorded and to be analysed later.

Colour and Dispersion: Context

Presentation on Colour 212 kB

Microsoft PowerPoint presentation on aspects of colour – absorption, reflection of light by coloured objects, components of white light, etc.

Newton’s first paper on a new theory of light and colour

Newton’s first published scientific paper is among the Royal Society’s historical journal archive, which is now permanently free to access online. The distinctive feature of Newton’s paper is that not only is it written in the first person, but his language conveys his curiosity, enthusiasm and method. The original has the old style of printing, that is, ‘s’ as an ‘f’.

A Commentary of Newton’s first paper on light and colour

The article includes a prequel on 17th century optics, a detailed analysis of the 1672 paper and the consequences of the paper.

Colour and Dispersion: Activities

Dyes in Milk 11.8 MB

Three dyes are added to milk in a petri dish. A drop of detergent is then added and the dyes mix. Light, colour. 1 min avi file.

Short Pracs by Colin Hopkins

Colour and Dispersion: Assessment

Colour and Dispersion: Websites

Atmospheric Optics – Rainbows, Haloes, Glories, Coronas

This is a very professional website on atmospheric optics. For example under ‘Rainbows’ there are 16 different headings including supernumeraries, Alexander’s dark band as well as a gallery of extraordinary photos. Other areas include Shadows, Ice Haloes and a gallery of general photos (OpticsPod)

Tanker hovers over the sea: Excellent example of a Fata Morgana mirage

This is an article featuring a stunning image of a giant tanker appearing to hover over the surface of the sea off the coast of Cornwall. The article refers to temperature inversion to explain a Fata Morgana, includes a ray diagram, but does not refer to total internal reflection.

How much physics can you see in a single picture?

This blog opens with the question ‘How much physics can you spot in a single picture? It would be a useful observational exercise on light. The blog is Dr Mirjam Glessmer’s. The blog was found in a search on Fata Morgana. Dr Glessmer is an oceanographer and science communicator at the University of Bergen. Her webpage on ’24 Days of Kitchen Oceanography’ (24 easy experiments using common household items) will be valuable for middle school science and geography.

Diffraction and Interference: Context

Diffraction and Interference: Activities

Interference and Diffraction Experiment 37.4 kB

Worksheet for the experiment using the small black IEC box.

Diffraction Waves 15.4 kB

A work sheet for observing diffraction with the ripple tank – can be used as part of sound practical activities.

FARLabs: Light and Matter Experiments on line

FARLabs is short for Freely Accessible Remote Laboratories. It is a website where your students can control real experiments via the internet and collect their own data. There are four experiments i) Photoelectric effect, ii) Young’s Double Slit experiment using a beam line at the Synchrotron, iii) Diffraction pattern of a thin wire from a laser beam, iv) 3D imaging. Once registered, teachers will be able to book times for their students. Most experiments accommodate 8 groups of 2.

Interference and diffraction of waves

A PhET Simulation of interference and diffraction of water waves, sound and light. A comprehensive simulation.

Diffraction and Interference: Assessment

Diffraction and Interference: Websites

Polarisation: Activities

Painting in Polarisation

An article from the America Journal of Physics.  The article explores what can be done with a few strips of sticky tape and two polarisers. 

EM Spectrum: Context

Seeing the World in UV: A Veritasium video A 11 min Youtube video
Seeing the World in UV: A Physics Girl video A 12 min Youtube video
Seeing the World in IR: A NASA video A 7 min Youtube video
Radio waves as an electromagnetic field PhET Simulation of radio waves produced by accelerating charges.
Generating an EM wave: Diagram and text

A short pdf with an effective diagram showing how an oscillating charge produces an EM wave. It goes on to mention Maxwell’s equation, but to show the expression for the speed of light.

EM Spectrum: Activities

Antenna simulation

After some introduction on em waves the simulation shows a charge moving up and down a wire producing an oscillating E filed that propagates to another wire making the charges in it oscillate. The frequency of oscillation can be changed.