Wave Optic Theories
The wave theory of light has a long history, dating back to the 17th century. In the 1670s, Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens proposed that light was a wave motion, and he developed the principle of wavefronts and secondary wavelets to explain the behavior of light.
However, the wave theory faced opposition from the corpuscular theory of light, which was supported by Isaac Newton. Newton’s theory proposed that light was composed of small particles called corpuscles that traveled in a straight line and interacted with the external environment. Newton conducted experiments to explain light’s reflection, refraction, and rectilinear propagation. However, his corpuscular theory could not explain diffraction, which is a typical wave property.
Wave Optics
Wave optics is a branch of physics that studies various phenomena such as interference, diffraction, and polarization. It involves the behavior of light and its interaction with different mediums, leading to studying wavefronts, waves normal, coherent and incoherent sources, and other related concepts.
In this article, we will have a comprehensive study of Wave Optics, including its theories, concepts, and more.
Table of Content
- What is Wave Optics?
- Wave Optic Theories
- Wavefront and Wave Normal
- Coherent and Incoherent Sources
- Wave Optics Formulas