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Questions
State two points of difference between the interference patterns obtained in Young’s double slit experiment and the diffraction pattern due to a single slit.
Give two points of difference between an interference pattern due to a double slit and a diffraction pattern due to a single slit.
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Solution 1
The two differences between the interference patterns obtained in Young’s double slit experiment and the diffraction pattern due to a single slit are as follows:
- The fringes in the interference pattern obtained from diffraction are of varying width, while in the case of interference, all are of the same width.
- The bright fringes in the interference pattern obtained from diffraction have a central maximum followed by fringes of decreasing intensity, whereas in the case of interference, all the bright fringes are of equal width.
Solution 2
| Points | Interference | Diffraction |
| Origin: | It is produced by the superposition of light from two coherent sources (double slit). | It is produced by the superposition of wavelets from different parts of the same slit (single slit). |
| Fringe width and intensity: | The fringes are equally spaced and of nearly equal intensity (except due to envelope effects). | The central maximum is widest and brightest; secondary maxima are weaker and not equally spaced. Intensity decreases rapidly for higher orders. |
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