Links to background information

Further information about these and related activities can be found in a number of publications on this theme in SEP’s Innovations in Practical Work series as indicated below. There are also links here to further experiments on the Practical Physics website and to other websites of interest.

Activity 1  Frequencies in the visible spectrum

SEP Light and matter: models and applications
The spectroscope is used in Activity A6 ‘Examining simple spectra’ to illustrate how information can be obtained through spectroscopic analysis.

SEP Seeing beyond the visible
Activity A1 ‘Everything glows’ looks at the range of frequencies given out by objects glowing at different temperatures.

Practical Physics: Spectra and colour
This collection of experiments starts with how a prism can be used to show a simple spectrum, and goes on to look at other activities on the spectrum, including its extension beyond the visible, as well as line spectra.

Activity 2 Combining colours

SEP Seeing beyond the visible
Activity A3 ‘Seeing at different frequencies’ uses imaging software to show how the colour images displayed by a computer are produced from a combination of red, green and blue light.

Practical Physics: Spectra and colour
This collection of experiments includes work on how colours can be combined, including additive colour mixing.

Activity 3 Signalling using fibre optics

SEP Radiation and communication
This booklet looks at how radiation of different frequencies can be used to transmit signals, and includes two activities on visible light and fibre optics – Activity A1 ‘Detecting light’ and Activity A2 ‘Using optical fibres’.

Practical Physics: Refraction of light
Light is made to bend in an optical fibre by refraction, and the principle can be demonstrated by an experiment on refraction in a tank of water.

How Stuff Works: Fiber optics
There is useful and accessible information here about how optical fibres work, how they are made and the advantages of their use.

Activity 4 Detecting infrared radiation

SEP Radiation and communication
Activity A3 ‘Detecting infrared radiation’ has more information about how a phototransistor can be used to detect infrared radiation.

Practical Physics: Beyond the visible spectrum
This experiment illustrates how a prism can be used to create a spectrum and how an infrared detector shows that part of the radiation lies beyond the visible region.

Learn about infrared images
A set of education pages on the California Institute of Technology website – each page shows an infrared image and a pop-up explanation.

Activity 5 Signalling with infrared radiation

SEP Radiation and communication
In this booklet there is information about the uses of infrared signalling and the principles of a TV remote control, including Activity A4 ‘Properties of infrared radiation’ and Activity A5 ‘Signalling with infrared radiation’.

How Stuff Works: How remote controls work
This is a helpful introduction to what is inside a remote control and how it transmits a digital signal

Activity 6 Microwave radiation

SEP Radiation and communication
Activity A6 ‘Microwave radiation and mobiles’ and Activity A7 ‘Properties of microwave radiation’ have further information about the Phone Flasher and how experiments can be done to see what kinds of materials will allow microwave radiation to pass through them.

How Stuff Works: How cell phones work
This provides information about microwave transmitters (base stations), the areas that they cover (cells), and the frequencies and channels used by mobile phones.

Activity 7 Ultraviolet radiation

Royal Society of Chemistry: LearnNet
This includes a practical activity sheet ‘Cold light’ that is helpful in distinguishing between phosphorescence, fluorescence and other kinds of luminescence.

Wikipedia
There are some useful entries on ultraviolet radiation, phosphorescence and fluorescence.

Activity 8 Diffraction

SEP Light and matter: models and applications
This booklet looks at useful applications based the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter, and includes work on diffraction in Activity A4 ‘The effect of very small objects’.

Practical Physics: Diffraction of light
This collection of experiments provides a range of activities about diffraction.

IOP Classroom Physics Newsletter
The back page of the June 2009 issue has an article ‘Modelling X-ray diffraction’ that links the patterns shown by the SEP diffraction grids to the discovery of the structure of DNA.

Secret of Photo 51
This is the famous X-ray diffraction photograph of DNA produced by Rosalind Franklin and which led Crick and Watson to propose the double helix model. A series of diagrams and animations Anatomy of Photo 51 explains how the various features of the photograph can be accounted for by the structure of DNA.

Activity 9 Polarisation

SEP Light and matter: models and applications
Activity A9 uses a physical model to account for the properties of polarised light.

MIT Haystack Observatory: Pre-college resources
This website includes a pdf file ‘Polarised or unpolarised’ which has interesting activities and useful information.

Practical resources

The ‘Waves and radiation sample pack’ can be purchased from Middlesex University Teaching Resources (MUTR); the resources in the pack can also be purchased separately.