Single Slit Diffraction
Diffraction is a phenomenon which envolves the bending of waves around
obstacles. This applet shows single slit diffraction. You can change the wavelength of the
light by moving the bar. You can also change the width of the slit by dragging one of the
sides.
Diffraction is determined by the ratio  / W, where is
the wavelength of the light and W is the width of the slit.
By shining the light from the slit on a screen, you find that it consists of bright and dark 'fringes'. In the middle,
a central, large bright fringe can be found.
The angle at which the dark fringes occur is given by
Notice the effect on the diffraction pattern as you change the slit width and wavelength.
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