INTERFERENCE OF

LIGHT

PRESNTED BY :
JIGNASHA PATEL
 LIGHT
• Light is a form of energy whose interaction
with retina gives the sensation of sight.
• Thus, light is the visible portion of the
electromagnetic radiation spectrum.
• Its wavelength range lies between infrared and
ultraviolet portions, from 400 nm at the violet
end of spectrum to 700 nm at the red end.
• The white light consists of seven colours
denoted by ‘VIBGYOR’.
PRINCIPLE OF
SUPERPOSITION
• Frequently it is necessary to find the resultant
disturbance at a point when a number of
disturbances arrive simultaneously. According to
the principle of superposition -- “when two or
more waves overlap, the resultant displacement
at any point and at any instant may be found by
adding the instantaneous displacements that
would be produced at the point by the individual
waves if each were present alone.”
• It means that the resultant is simply the sum
of the disturbances. The principle of
superposition applies to electromagnetic
waves also and is the most important
principles in wave optics.
• In electromagnetic waves, the term
displacement refers to the amplitude of the
electric field vector.
• Interference is an important consequence of
superposition of coherent waves.
 COHERENT SOURCES
• Those sources of light which emit light waves
continuously of same wavelength, and time
period, frequency and amplitude and have
zero phase difference or constant phase
difference are called coherent sources.
 INTERFERENCE
• When two or more wave trains of light of
same frequency travelling in almost same
direction superimpose, the resultant intensity
in the region of superimposition is different
than the intensity of individual waves.
• The modification in the distribution of
intensity of light in the region of
superposition is called interference.
• Depending upon the way the waves
superimpose, the interference is of two types :
(1) Constructive interference (2)
Destructive interference
CONSTRUCTIVE
INTERFERENCE
• When the waves superimpose in such a way that
their maxima and minima correspond with each
other, the resultant amplitude is the sum of the
amplitudes due to separate waves (fig.1).
• As the intensity is proportional to the square of
the amplitude and hence the resultant intensity
at this point is increased.
• This phenomenon is called constructive
interference.
 CONDITIONS FOR CONSTRUCTIVE
INTERFERENCE

• For constructive interference, path difference

between two waves is nλ
i.e. path difference = nλ
or path difference = 0, λ, 2λ, 3λ, 4λ, …..
where n = order = 0, +_1, +_2, +_3,…..

Fig.1
 EFFECTS
• In constructive interference, two waves of
light reinforce each other.
• In constructive interference, a bright fringe is
obtained on the screen.
 DESTRUCTIVE
INTERFERENCE
• When the waves superimpose in such a way that
the maxima of one corresponds with the minima
of other, the resultant amplitude is equal to the
difference of the amplitudes due to separate
waves. This is termed as destructive interference
(fig. 2).
Fig.2
 CONDITIONS FOR 
DESTRUCTIVE INTERFERENCE

• If the path difference between two light waves

is (n+1/2)λ , then the interference between
them will be destructive.
Path difference = (n+1/2)λ
i.e. path difference = 1/2λ, 3/2λ, 5/2λ , ….
where n = order = 0, +_1, +_2, +_3,…..
 EFFECTS
• In destructive interference, two waves cancel
the effects of each other.
• Due to destructive interference a dark fringe is
obtained on the screen.
• Thus, due to phenomenon of interference we
get intensity maxima (due to constructive
interference) and intensity minima (due to
destructive interference) which are called
bright and dark fringes respectively.
• The array of such fringes is labelled as
interference pattern (fig.3).
• It has been observed that to get interference
effects the waves must be coherent. The best
condition for interference to occur is when the
light is monochromatic, i.e., a narrow band of
wavelengths.
• But interference can also be obtained with
white light under optimum conditions.