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11th grade Reflection, refraction and diffraction of waves worksheet

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Reflection, refraction and diffraction of waves

Grade 11 Science Worksheet - Challenge Me

NameDate

Circle the best answer, or write your answer on the line.

  1. A ray in air hits a clear liquid at 45° from the normal and refracts at 30° from the normal. What is the liquid's refractive index, to 2 decimals, Ari?

  2. A ray in air hits a clear liquid at 60° from the normal and refracts at 40° from the normal. What is the liquid's refractive index, to 2 decimals, Bo?

  3. A ray in air hits a clear liquid at 70° from the normal and refracts at 38° from the normal. What is the liquid's refractive index, to 2 decimals, Esme?

  4. The table was taken with a 2.0 cm wavelength. What does it show about the gap, Jun?

    • The spread depends on the size of the gap alone, not on the wavelength, as this table shows
    • Narrowing the gap toward the wavelength spreads the waves more, up to 90° at 2.0 cm
    • A gap narrower than 2.0 cm stops the waves completely, so there is no angle for it
    • Widening the gap toward the wavelength spreads the waves more, as the angle column shows
  5. Kira doubles the ripple frequency in the same tank, so the wavelength halves. What is the first-minimum angle for the 4.0 cm gap now?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • 60°, since doubling the frequency doubles the angle
    • 7°, since halving the wavelength halves the angle
    • 30°, the same as before, since the gap has not changed
    • 14°, the same as the 8.0 cm gap gave before
  6. With a wavelength of 3.0 cm, Luz wants the first minimum at 30°. What gap width is needed?

    Use the picture in question 4.

    • 6.0 cm
    • 1.5 cm
    • 12 cm
    • 3.0 cm
  7. A doorway 0.9 m wide casts a sharp light shadow. Milo says light does not diffract. Light's wavelength is 500 nm. Agree or disagree?

    • Agree: a sharp shadow means light travels in straight lines, so it cannot diffract, whatever the gap
    • Disagree: light spreads a lot, but the spread is hidden by the brightness of the room
    • Disagree: light does diffract, but 500 nm is about two million times smaller than the doorway
    • Agree: light diffracts through gaps narrower than the doorway, and this one is not narrow enough
  8. In one glass, n is 1.51 for red light and 1.53 for violet. Noah says red bends most on entering the glass, since it has the longest wavelength. Agree or disagree?

    • Agree: the longest wavelength means the largest change when light enters the glass
    • Disagree: violet slows down more in the glass, so it bends more toward the normal
    • Disagree: red and violet bend the same amount, because n is almost equal
    • Agree: red is slower in glass because its frequency is lower than violet's
  9. Pia says the angle in the liquid is always the same fraction of the angle in air. Does the table support the claim?

    • No: the angles rise by the same step each time, so they cannot be a fraction
    • Yes: the angle ratio is 0.75 at 20° and about the same at 60°
    • Yes: the angle in the liquid rises as the angle in air rises
    • No: the angle ratio falls from 0.75 to 0.67, while the sine ratio stays near 1.33
  10. An ultrasound scanner must show details as small as 0.25 mm, so the wavelength must be no more than that. Sound in soft tissue travels at about 1540 m/s. What frequency is needed, Tala?

    • At least about 0.62 MHz
    • At least about 3.1 MHz
    • At least about 62 MHz
    • At least about 6.2 MHz
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11th grade Reflection, refraction and diffraction of waves worksheet – printable
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About this worksheet

Reflection, refraction and diffraction. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can find a wavelength in a new material from its refractive index, and say what stays the same (frequency) and what changes (speed, wavelength) at a boundary.
  • I can use the law of reflection from the normal, and the angle between rays and the turning of a mirror.
  • I can use Snell's law and the critical angle, and decide between refraction and total internal reflection.
  • I can compare a wavelength with a gap or an obstacle to judge how much a wave diffracts, and use echoes and sonar with the there-and-back halving.

Standard: supports HS-PS4-1

Words to know

reflection: A wave bouncing off a surface

refraction: A wave changing direction as its speed changes at a boundary

diffraction: A wave spreading out through a gap or around an edge

normal: A line at right angles to a surface, where angles are measured from

wave front: A line joining neighboring crests, seen from above

refractive index (n): How many times slower light is in a material than in air

critical angle: Smallest angle from the normal at which light inside is totally reflected

total internal reflection: All the light bounces back inside the denser material

Common mistakes

Your child multiplied the wavelength by the refractive index. Light is slower in glass, so its wavelength gets shorter: divide.

Your child gave the whole there-and-back trip. An echo travels to the wall and back, so the wall is half of speed × time away.

Your child measured an angle from the surface. The angles of incidence and refraction are measured from the normal, at 90° to the surface.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with reflection, refraction and diffraction of waves?

Your child multiplied the wavelength by the refractive index. Light is slower in glass, so its wavelength gets shorter: divide.

Are these 11th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

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