Physics 4
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  • HOME
    • Introduction
    • Pre-course Setup
  • PHYSICS 4AL
    • 4AL Grading Policy
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Google Drive
    • Report Writing
    • 4AL Lab Sections /Office hours
    • Unit 1 - Training (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 2 - Motion (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 3 - Oscillations (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 4 - Project (Winter 2023)
  • PHYSICS 4BL
    • Grading Policy
    • Lab Sections/ Office Hours
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Google Drive
    • Report Writing
    • Unit 1 - Training
    • Unit 2 - Sound
    • Unit 3 - Circuits
    • Unit 4 - Optics
    • Unit 5 - Project
    • Pre-Lab Assignments
  • RESOURCES
    • Physics
    • Python
    • Arduino
    • Electronics
    • Software Download
  • EXTERNAL LINKS
    • GradeScope
    • CCLE
    • MyUCLA
    • CampusWire
    • UCLA Calendars
    • UCLA Physics Dept.

Unit 4 - Optics

Optics

"Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light. Because light is an electromagnetic wave, other forms of electromagnetic radiation such as X-rays, microwaves, and radio waves exhibit similar properties.
​

Most optical phenomena can be accounted for using the classical electromagnetic description of light. Complete electromagnetic descriptions of light are, however, often difficult to apply in practice. Practical optics is usually done using simplified models. The most common of these, geometric optics, treats light as a collection of rays that travel in straight lines and bend when they pass through or reflect from surfaces. Physical optics is a more comprehensive model of light, which includes wave effects such as diffraction and interference that cannot be accounted for in geometric optics. Historically, the ray-based model of light was developed first, followed by the wave model of light. Progress in electromagnetic theory in the 19th century led to the discovery that light waves were in fact electromagnetic radiation." ~Wikipedia
​
  • Lab 4A: Project Chalk Talk and 3D Printing Intro 
  • Lab 4B: Geometric Optics
  • Lab 4C: Diffraction 

Physics Background

To review physics laws on mechanics, please check out  OpenStax texbook.
  • University Physics Volume 2
    • 16.5 Electromagnetic Spectrum​

  • Unit 4 Instructions Slides
edited Jan 19, 2023 by Javier Carmona
  • HOME
    • Introduction
    • Pre-course Setup
  • PHYSICS 4AL
    • 4AL Grading Policy
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Google Drive
    • Report Writing
    • 4AL Lab Sections /Office hours
    • Unit 1 - Training (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 2 - Motion (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 3 - Oscillations (Winter 2023)
    • Unit 4 - Project (Winter 2023)
  • PHYSICS 4BL
    • Grading Policy
    • Lab Sections/ Office Hours
    • Weekly Schedule
    • Google Drive
    • Report Writing
    • Unit 1 - Training
    • Unit 2 - Sound
    • Unit 3 - Circuits
    • Unit 4 - Optics
    • Unit 5 - Project
    • Pre-Lab Assignments
  • RESOURCES
    • Physics
    • Python
    • Arduino
    • Electronics
    • Software Download
  • EXTERNAL LINKS
    • GradeScope
    • CCLE
    • MyUCLA
    • CampusWire
    • UCLA Calendars
    • UCLA Physics Dept.