Wave Phenomena and Light — Syllabus
NIOS · Class 12 · Physics
What Wave Phenomena and Light covers in NIOS Class 12 Physics: 4 topics, for the 2026-27 session. Part of the NIOS Class 12 Physics syllabus.
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Topics in Wave Phenomena and Light
Huygens' Principle and Wave Propagation
- Christian Huygens postulated that light is a wave that travels through a hypothetical medium called 'ether' (now considered obsolete, but the wave theory remains valid).
- A WAVEFRONT is defined as the locus of all points of a medium that vibrate in the same phase at any given instant of time.
- A point source produces SPHERICAL wavefronts. A line source produces CYLINDRICAL wavefronts. A distant source produces PLANE wavefronts.
Interference of Light — Young's Double Slit Experiment
- Interference is the redistribution of energy (not creation or destruction of energy) when two or more coherent light waves superpose.
- Thomas Young first demonstrated interference of light experimentally in 1802 using his famous Double Slit Experiment (YDSE).
- COHERENT SOURCES are sources that emit light waves of the same frequency, same amplitude, and maintain a constant phase difference between them.
Diffraction of Light
- Diffraction is the bending of light around the corners of an obstacle or through an aperture, into the region of geometric shadow.
- Diffraction is a wave phenomenon — it proves that light behaves as a wave.
- Condition for observing diffraction: size of obstacle/aperture should be of the ORDER OF the wavelength of light (≈ 10⁻⁶ m for visible light).
Polarisation of Light
- Polarisation conclusively proves that light is a TRANSVERSE wave (vibrations perpendicular to the direction of propagation).
- Longitudinal waves (like sound) CANNOT be polarised — if sound could be polarised, it would prove sound is transverse, which it is not.
- UNPOLARISED LIGHT: The electric field vibrates in ALL possible directions (in a plane perpendicular to direction of propagation) randomly and rapidly.
Key Concepts
Central concept: Wave Nature of Light
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