In a single-slit diffraction experiment, a coherent light source illuminates a slit in a barrier, and the resulting pattern is projected on a screen that is separated from the barrier by a distance which is very large as compared to the slit width and the wavelength of the light source. A student makes sketches of the resulting patterns. While the center of each bright or dark band is accurately represented, the shading is qualitative, and the choice of color may not reflect the wavelength of the light source. The distance from the barrier to the screen is 2.3 m, and the slit has width 7.3 μm. A) What is the ratio of the slit width to the wavelength of the incident light?
B) What is the wavelength of the incident light, in nanometers?
C) If the screen is very wide, how many dark bands appear to one side of the central maximum?