Huygen's Principle: Understanding Light Diffraction and Refraction in Materials

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around Huygen's Principle and its application to light diffraction and refraction in materials. Participants explore the behavior of light as it interacts with atoms in different media, questioning the nature of wave propagation and the role of atomic structure in these phenomena.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions whether atoms inside a material release waves in all directions during diffraction or refraction.
  • Another participant asserts that it is the wavefront itself that generates wavelets, not the atoms.
  • A subsequent post challenges the idea of atoms emitting waves, suggesting that while atoms can emit waves, it is misleading to say they do so when a wave passes through a transparent medium.
  • Concerns are raised about Huygen's principle's ability to explain phenomena occurring within the inner structure of materials, particularly in the context of total reflection in mirrors.
  • One participant emphasizes that mirrors do not refract light but reflect it completely, although some energy may be absorbed.
  • There is a discussion about the limitations of Huygen's principle as a phenomenological model in classical optics, especially when considering quantum mechanics and atomic interactions.
  • A participant expresses confusion about whether light should be considered an electromagnetic wave, a particle, or a combination of both.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the role of atoms in wave propagation and the applicability of Huygen's principle to quantum descriptions of light. There is no consensus on how these concepts interrelate, and the discussion remains unresolved.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight the limitations of Huygen's principle when applied to atomic structures and the complexities introduced by quantum mechanics, indicating that a full understanding may require more advanced knowledge in solid state or condensed matter physics.

Physicsissuef
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I want to know, when there is diffraction or refraction of light, are the atoms inside of the material releasing also waves in whole directions, like on this pictures:
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/5714/80472685hw1.jpg"
 
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It is not atoms that release the wavelets, it's the wavefront itself.

Claude.
 
Claude Bile said:
It is not atoms that release the wavelets, it's the wavefront itself.

Claude.

Do the lattice atoms from inside of the material release waves?
 
Anybody know?
 
Physicsissuef said:
Do the lattice atoms from inside of the material release waves?
Assuming that, by "release" you mean "emit"...

Any atom can emit waves through spontaneous or stimulated emission.

If, however a wave passes through a transparent medium, then it is incorrect (or, at best, misleading) to say that the atoms within the medium have "emitted" a wave.

Claude.
 
Claude Bile said:
Assuming that, by "release" you mean "emit"...

Any atom can emit waves through spontaneous or stimulated emission.

If, however a wave passes through a transparent medium, then it is incorrect (or, at best, misleading) to say that the atoms within the medium have "emitted" a wave.

Claude.

But Huygen's principle can't explain what happens in the inner structure of the material, when there is transparent medium.
Is in mirrors, have total reflection, aren't there any refraction?
 
With a mirror there is no refraction. It is completely refecting what hit it. I'm sure some energy gets absorbed in the process.
 
Physicsissuef said:
But Huygen's principle can't explain what happens in the inner structure of the material, when there is transparent medium.
Is in mirrors, have total reflection, aren't there any refraction?

I am having a bit of a problem understanding why you want to "merge" Huygen's principle with actual QM description of optical transport in matter (which you can learn from solid state/condensed matter physics, or in our FAQ). Huygen's principle, as we know it now, is more of a "phenomenological model" of classical optics. There are many aspects of such models that will simply not work when you try to incorporate atoms and matter into such things.

Zz.
 
Yes, I also thought that it is just one model for describing what happens when there is reflection or refraction. Anyway, I have read so many articles, is it light EM wave, particle or mixture of both?
 
  • #10
Read our FAQ.

Zz.
 

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