A beam of orange light illuminates two slits that are closely spaced. The resulting intensity pattern is a series of bright and dark fringes. What happens to the intensity pattern if we now change to blue light?
A) The series of bright and dark fringes changes to circular fringes.
B) The series of bright and dark fringes spreads out.
C) The series of bright and dark fringes gets closer together.
D) The series of bright and dark fringes disappears.
E) Nothing changes.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The spacing between the bright and dark fringes in the intensity pattern is directly proportional to the wavelength of the illuminating light. Since blue light has a shorter wavelength than orange light, the fringes will appear closer together.

A Beam of Orange Light Illuminates Two Slits That Are