Name _______________________________________________________
Electromagnetism Worksheet #1
Frequency, Wavelength & The Speed of Light
1. What is meant by the "frequency of light"? What symbol is used for it,
and what is the SI unit for frequency?
2. Sketch a diagram of a wave and label its wavelength and its amplitude.
3. Give the equation that relates the wavelength and frequency of a light
wave to the speed of light.
4. What is the frequency in hertz of blue light having a wavelength of 425
nm? (nano = 1 X 10-9)
5. Ozone protects the earth's inhabitants from the harmful effects of
ultraviolet light arriving from the sun. This shielding is a maximum for
UV light having a wavelength of 295 nm. What is the frequency in hertz
of this particular wavelength of UV light?
6. Radar signals are also part of the electromagnetic spectrum in the
microwave region. A typical radar signal has a wavelength of 3.19 cm.
What is the frequency in hertz?
7. FM radio dials are calibrated in frequency. In Bloomington, the radio
station B 97 broadcasts its FM signal at a frequency of 96.7 megahertz
(MHz). What is the wavelength of this signal in meters?
8. Sodium vapour lamps are often used in residential street lighting. They
give off a yellow light having a frequency of 5.09 X 1014 Hz. What is the
wavelength of this signal in nanometers?
9. AM radio dials are calibrated in frequency. In Bloomington, an AM
radio station broadcasts at a frequency of 830 kHz. What is the
wavelength of these radio waves expressed in meters?
10. Some earthquake waves travel at 5 km/sec. What is the wavelength of
these waves if the earth tremors are 10 per second?
11. In the diagrams below, which wave has the higher frequency? Explain.
12. Order the following regions of the EM spectrum from lowest to highest
energy: infrared, microwaves, ultraviolet, visible red, visible green, X-rays.
13. Of the following colors of visible light: green, yellow, red, blue, which has
the…
a) highest frequency? ___________
b) longest wavelength? ___________
___________
Lowest frequency? ___________
Shortest wavelength?
c) greatest amount of energy? ___________ Least energy? ___________
14. As wavelength increases, what happens to frequency? ___________
As frequency increases, what happens to wavelength? ___________
Does the speed of light ever change? ___________
15. In which part of the electromagnetic spectrum would you find these waves?
a. 580 nm
b. 70 cm
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c. 0.20 nm
d. 20 m
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e. 0.002 m
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