We propose a laboratory experiment on the quantitative study of the normal dispersion of light. A triangular isosceles prism made of flint glass TF3 is used as the object of study, and we describe a simple and affordable device for observing and photographing the dispersion spectrum on a smartphone. A possibility of the quantitative investigation…

Distance learning in physics is still facing challenges, mainly due to the difficult access to a laboratory for practical work. Practical work is an essential part of the physics classroom because it allows students to interact with authentic physics phenomena and develop their scientific abilities. In this paper, we propose alternative…

In this study, it is aimed to develop practical teaching activities that can be used in optics teaching. For this purpose, a virtual laboratory environment was created in RayLab which is an application for design and simulation of optics on the iPad/iPhone. In this context, the dispersion of white light in the prism, the relationship between the…

This article deals with an exploration of a double superior mirage obtained in laboratory conditions and its contribution to the deep understanding of light events in specialized schools. It was revealed that an explanation of the formation process of a double superior mirage plays a key role in the adoption of knowledge on reflection and…

Ever since Newton's groundbreaking work on the composed nature of light, additive colour mixing (and its laws) are subject to the interest of physicists as well as other sciences. In this paper, we present a setup for simple lab or home experiments on additive colour mixing and the laws of colour mixing. Students use the screen of a laptop or…

Light emitting diodes have been used to determine Planck's constant in introductory physics laboratories. One common method relies on the energy of the light emitted by the LED and its relation to the energy gap in the solid of which the diode is composed. However, there could be a problem with the data that are collected for this experiment. For…

This paper describes the development of a light polarization experimental apparatus for a remote laboratory. The apparatus had been developed by controlling the analyzer rotation using a stepper motor controlled via the Arduino. Device control and data acquisition applications were developed with LabVIEW which provides remote control panel…

Diffraction refers to a kind of optical phenomena which occurs when light approaches an element (object or aperture) whose features are in the range of the illuminating wavelength (small apertures, sharp edges). It can be explained by means of the undulatory nature of light or also geometrically by using simple ray optics. Diffraction phenomena…

In this paper, a simple method is described for visually demonstrating that the wavelength of light reduces when entering a medium of higher refractive index. When a violet laser (405 nm) is reflected off the surface of a Blu-ray disc (track spacing 320 nm) diffraction cannot occur since the wavelength is greater than the track spacing. However,…

The reflection and refraction of light are more familiar to students than the reflection and refraction of sound. Reflection and refraction that occur during the transmission of sound waves are common phenomena in everyday life but are often difficult to understand during actual learning. In this study, we developed a sound reflection and…

The Crookes radiometer (also known as a light mill) is a fascinating sunlight-powered device, in which a set of vanes is placed inside a glass bulb within which a partial vacuum has been pulled. The vanes then rotate when sunlight shines on the bulb. The reason for the turning of the vanes was subject to intense debate and many students still have…

Although it originates from the ancient Greeks, optics still arouses a lot of scientific interest, mainly due to the technological innovation associated with it. One of its most interesting applications is related to optical metrology and the characterization of materials through optical techniques. While some of these processes can be explained…

An easy circuit for measuring the power of a solar panel in physics classroom by using the microcontroller Arduino will be introduced in this article. The measured data is transferred via Bluetooth to the smartphone app 'phyphox' where it is displayed graphically. The circuitry enables measuring the power of a solar panel in different situations…

The refractive index of a liquid is known to depend strongly on the temperature gradient of liquids. When a laser beam passes through a transparent material going through thermal diffusion, the light projected onto a screen will be displaced in relation to the thermal diffusivity. A simple apparatus is used to measure the time evolution t of the…

Teaching the noncommutativity of the product of matrices to high school or college level students is a difficult task when approached from a purely formal perspective. The aim of this paper is to present a simple experimental activity for teaching the noncommutativity of the matrix product, based on the Jones calculus, a mathematical formalism for…