Interference by Dr. N. Nanda Kumar, Dept. of Physics.

Wave theory of light attempts to understand the various optical phenomena

exhibited by light waves
Interference constituted the first proof of the wave nature of light. Thomas
Young first experimentally demonstrated interference in light waves. The
superposition principle forms the conceptual for the explanation of
interference.
 To produce interference, the light waves should have constant phase
difference and same frequencies.
Interference: When two or more light waves superimpose in the medium then
according to the superposition principle, the resultant displacement at any
point is equal to the algebraic sum of the displacements due to individual
waves.
If y1 and y2 are the displacements due to two light waves 1 and 2, then the
resultant displacement of the resultant wave is given by, y= y 1+y2.

The variation of the resultant displacement influences amplitude variation,

which causes intensity variations. This modification in the distribution of
intensity in the region of superposition is known as interference.
Figure: The bright fringes are regions where
constructive interference occurs, whereas the dark
fringes are regions of destructive interference.

Figure: Interference in soapy film

The Principle of superposition states that at any instant, the wave displacement
of the combined motion of any number of interacting waves at a point is the sum
of the displacements of all the component waves at that point.
Conditions for interference:
1. The two light sources emitting light waves should be coherent
2. The two sources must emit continuous light waves of same wavelengths and
frequency
3. The separation between the two sources and the screen should be small
4. To view interference fringes, the background should be dark
5. The amplitudes of light waves should be equal or nearly equal
6. The sources should be narrow, they must be small.
7. The sources should be monochromatic.

Coherence :
 Coherence is a property of a wave being in phase with itself and also with
another wave over a period of time and space [Based on Amplitude and Phase]
Temporal Coherence: possibility of predicting the amplitude and phase at a
point on the wave w.r.t another point on the same wave, then the wave is said to
be in temporal coherence. All the emitted photons are in phase, the resultant
radiation has temporal coherence.

Spatial coherence: possibilty of predicting the amplitude and phase at a point

on the wave w.r.t another point on a second wave, then the waves are said to be
in spatial coherence.
 n 1< n 2

Light undergoes a phase change of 180° ( radians) upon reflection from a medium that
has a higher index of refraction than the one in which the wave is traveling. “Low to high,
phase change is .”
Interference is the superposition of two waves originating from two coherent
sources. Sources which are coherent produce waves of the same frequency (f),
amplitude (a) and in phase.
The superposition of two waves emitted from coherent sources gives either
constructive or destructive interference.
Constructive interference occurs when the crests or troughs of both waves
coincide to produce a wave with crests and troughs of maximum amplitude.
Destructive interference occurs when the crest of one wave coincides with the
trough of the other wave, thus canceling each other with the result that the
resultant amplitude is zero
 Huygen’s wavelets:
“Every point on a known wavefront in a given medium can be treated as a point
source of secondary wavelets (spherical waves “Bubbling” out of the point, so to
speak) which spread out in all directions with a wave speed characteristic of that
medium. The developing wave front at any subsequent time is the envelope of
these advancing spherical wavelets.”
Secondary wavelets of radius r=vt, defines a new wavefront at some time ‘t’ later.
‘V’ is velocity and ‘r’ is the distance from initial wave front to the final wave front.

Figure: Huygen’s principle applied to the propagation of the plane and spherical
 Interference in thin films by reflection
When light is incident on a plane parallel thin film, some portion gets
reflected from the upper surface and the remaining portion is transmitted
into the film.
Again some portion of the transmitted light is reflected back into the film
by the lower surface and emerges through the upper surface.
These reflected light beams superimpose with each other, producing
interference and forming interference pattern.
Consider a transparent plane parallel thin film of thickness ‘t’ with
refractive index ‘µ’.

Figure:
Interference in thin
films
Let a monochromatic light ray AB be incident at an angle of incidence of ‘i’ on the
upper surface of the film. BE and BC are the reflected and transmitted light Rays. Let
the angle of refraction is ‘r’.
The ray BC will be reflected into the film and emerges through the film in the form of
the light ray DF. These two light rays superimpose and depending upon the path
difference between them, they produce interference patterns.

To know the path difference, let us draw the normal DG to BE. From the points D and
G onwards, the light ray travel equal distances. By the time the light ray travels from B
to G, the transmitted light ray has to travel from B to C and C to D.
The path difference between light rays (1) and (2) is

Path difference=µ(BC+CD)in film - BG in air .......................... (1)

Consider BCH,

Similarly, from DCH, .......................... (2)

To calculate BG, first BD which is equal to (BH+HD) has to be obtained

From BHC,

BH=t tan r
Similarly, HD=t tan r
BD=BH+HD=2t tan r ( since BH=HD) .................(3)

From BGD,

BG=BD sin i= 2t tan r . sin i

From Snell’s law, sin i = µ sin r
BG= 2µt tan r .sin r ......................... (4) (substituting in eq. (1))

Path difference=

......................... (5)
At the point ‘B’, reflection occurs from the upper surface of the thin film (denser
medium). Light ray (1) undergoes an additional phase change of π or an additional
path difference of λ/2.
Total path difference
When the path difference is equal to integral multiples of λ then the rays (1) and (2)
meet in phase and undergo constructive interference.
The condition for bright fringe is

Where n=0, 1, 2, 3 ....etc. ............................. (6)

When the path difference is equal to half integral multiples of λ then the rays (1)
and (2) meet in out of phase and undergo destructive interference.

The condition for dark is fringe

2µt cos r = nλ
Where n=0, 1, 2, 3 ....etc. .............................(7)

Depending on the above conditions, the interference pattern consists of bright and
dark fringes.
 Newton’s Rings
Newton’s rings are the best examples for the interference in a non-uniform
thin film. When a Plano-convex lens with its convex surface is placed on a
plane glass plate, an air film of increasing thickness is formed between two.
The thickness of the air film at the point of contact is zero.
If monochromatic light is allowed to fall normally and the film is viewed in
the reflected light, alternate bright and dark rings concentrate around the point
of contact between the lens and glass plate are seen.
These circular rings were discovered by Newton and are called Newton’s
rings.
Experimental arrangement
The plano-convex lens (L) of large radius of curvature is placed with its
convex surface on a plane glass plate (P). The lens makes the contact with
the plate at ‘O’.
The monochromatic light falls on a glass plate ‘G’ held at an angle of 45o
with the vertical. The glass plate ‘G’ reflects normally a part of the incident
light towards the air film enclosed by the lens ‘L’ and the glass plate ‘P’. A
part of the light is reflected by the curved surface of the lens ‘L’ and a part is
transmitted which is reflected back from the plane surface of the plate.
These reflected rays interfere and give rise to an interference pattern in the
form of circular rings. These rings are seen near the upper surface of the air
film through the microscope.
 Figure: Experimental arrangement and
formation of Newton’s rings.

L O
O
P

Note: “Wavefront”: The locus of all the points

in a wave motion which have the same phase.
Newton’s rings are formed due to interference between the light rays reflected
from the top and bottom surfaces of air film between the plate and lens. As shown in
the figure, a part of the incident monochromatic light PA is reflected at A (glass-air
boundary) in the form of the ray (1) without any additional phase (or path) change.
The other part of light is refracted along AB. Then at B (air-glass boundary), it is
again reflected in the form of the ray (2) with additional phase change of π or path
difference of λ/2.
As the ring are observed in the reflected light, the path difference between them is

For the air film =1 and for normal incidence r =0, path difference is

At the point of contact t=0 (t=thickness of the air film), path difference is λ/2, i.e., the
reflected light at the point of contact suffers phase change of π. Then the incident
and reflected lights are out of phase and interfere destructively. Hence the central
spot is dark.
The condition for bright ring is

Where n=1,2,3.....
The condition for dark ring is

Where n=0,1,2,3......
 Theory of Newton’s Rings
To find the diameter of dark and bright rings, let ‘L’ be a lens placed on a glass plate
‘P’. The convex surface of the lens is the part of spherical surface with centre at ‘C’.
Let ‘R’ be the radius of curvature and ‘r’ be the radius of Newton’s ring
corresponding to the film thickness ‘t’.
From the property of a circle, D
NA  NB=NO  ND
Substituting the values, R
r  r = t  (2R-t); r2 = 2Rt-t2
As ‘t' is small, t2 will be
.C
Negligible, r2= 2Rt, t=r2/2R N A R
B
For the bright ring, the condition is t t
P
Replacing ‘r’ by ‘D/2’, the diameter of nth bright O r
ring will be
Figure: Theory of Newton’s
Rings
Thus, the diameter of the bright rings are proportional to the square root of odd natural
numbers. For dark ring, the condition is : 2t=nλ

Thus, the diameter of dark rings are proportional to the square root of natural numbers.
With increase in the order (n), the rings get closer and the fringe width decrease.
 Double slit interference: (Young’s Double-Slit Experiment):
• Thomas Young first demonstrated interference in light waves from two
sources in 1801. The narrow slits S1 and S2 act as sources of waves.
• The waves emerging from the slits originate from the same wavefront and
therefore are always in phase.
• The light from the two slits forms a visible pattern on a screen.
• The pattern consists of a series of bright and dark parallel bands called fringes
as shown in figure in the next page.

1
r

2
=r2-r1
r2  r1 d sin 
2
[ phase difference  path length difference ]
Figure. 1 
 • The disturbances arriving at ‘P’ from S1
and S2 are different in amplitude, due to
the different distances r1 and r2.
• From the figure.1, there is a phase
difference between the disturbances at
‘P’, corresponding to the time difference
(r2-r1)/v, where ‘v’ is the wave speed.
[Nodal lines: Line joining the positions of
minimum disturbance nodes in an
interference pattern. (or)
The loci - nodal lines - along which the
resultant disturbance is almost zero at all
(b) times.]
• At point ‘P’ the resultant displacement as
a function of time is of the form
(t)=A1 cos ω …. (1)
(a)

Equation (1) represents the fact that a given sequence of displacements at either source gives
rise, at a time ‘r/v’ later, to a similar sequence at a point distance ‘r’ away. Then, we can put,
A1 A2 (= A0 say), then
(t)=A0 = 2A0.cos ωt. Cos
Introducing the wavelength, = = [Note: cosA+cosB=2.cos. cos]
[c= , T=2/]
 The path difference for secondary waves arriving at a point ‘P’ from adjacent slits
equal to ‘d.sin’. This then defines a time difference ‘d.sin/v’ and a phase difference ’’ is
given by
……….(1) [ since, = = ]
The resultant displacement at ‘P’ is thus of the form
(t)=A0cos
=/
, is the phase difference corresponding to the distance r1 from the
first slit to the point ‘P’. [Since, Phase diff=/
The amplitude ‘A’ of the resultant is obtained by taking the vector sum of “N’ vectors
of length ‘A0’, each of which makes an angle ‘’ with its next neighbor.
The result is, ……………………………(2)
Now let us consider how ‘A’ depends on the angle ‘’.
It is especially illuminating to do this with the help of a series of vector diagrams, as
shown in the figure. (2) for the particular case N=10.
1. When, =0, A=NAo. This therefore represents the biggest possible resultant
amplitude. It occurs for every value of ‘sin
That is an array of ‘N’ slits, of spacing ‘d’, has what are called principal maxima at the
same directions as a two slit system of the same spacing.
2. When, =2/N, 4/N, 6/N, …..etc, the combining vectors form a closed polygon and we
have, A=0.
Completed
 Multiple Slits, Graph
With more than two slits, the pattern
contains primary and secondary maxima.
For N slits, the intensity of the primary
maxima is N2 times greater than that due
to a single slit.
As the number of slits increases, the
primary maxima increase in intensity and
become narrower.
– The secondary maxima decrease
in intensity relative to the
primary maxima.
The number of secondary maxima is N –
2, where N is the number of slits.
Constructive interference Constructive interference Destructive interference
Action of Diffraction Grating
• If d is the slit spacing then
X the path difference between
the light rays X and Y = d sin
θ θ.
• For principal maxima,
θ Y d sin θ = nλ.
d • The closer the slits, the more
widely spaced are the
θ diffracted beams.
Path difference • The longer the wavelength of
= d sin θ light used, the more widely
spaced are the diffracted
beams.
 Parallel-sided Thin Film (1)
• Consider a film of soap with uniform thickness in air

When a beam of light is incident

on to the surface of the film, part
of incident light is reflected on
the top surface and part of that
transmitted is reflected on the
lower surface.
air
If the film is not too thick, the
t Soap film
two
reflected beams produces an
interference effect.
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