In the figure, two waves A and B both have vacuum wavelengths of 800 nm. The wav

Question

In the figure, two waves A and B both have vacuum wavelengths of 800 nm. The waves arise from the same source and are in phase initially. Wave A travels a distance of 2m in air, while wave B travels the same distance but passes through a glass tank (n_glass = 1.5) filled with water (n_water = 1.33). The glass walls of the tank have equal thickness of 2 cm cm, and the tank is 30 cm wide. 2 cm cm, and the tank is 30 cm wide. Calculate the optical path difference (OPD) for the two waves A and B. b. Two coherent parallel waves, coming from sources at different locations, move along the x axis. Their wave functions are: E_1 = 3sin(100 pi t - pi/6) and E_2 = 4sin(100 pi t + pi/2), where E_1 and E_2 are in volts per meter.

Explanation / Answer

part a:

optical path length is defined as product of geometric length covered

by the waves and the refractive index of the medium

for wave A, optical length=2*1=2

for wave B,

optical length=distance through glass wall*refractive index of glass

+distance through water*refractive index of water+distance through air*refractive index of air

=(0.02+0.02)*1.5+0.3*1.33+(2-0.02-0.02-0.3)*1

=2.119 m

so optical path difference=2.119-2=0.119 m=11.9 cm

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