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Why does a single slit diffraction pattern occur?

When light passes through a narrow gap it will diffract (spread out). This means the light reaching the screen could have come from anywhere within the slit. If one wavefront passes through the left of the s...
JH
Answered by Jordan H. • Physics tutor
15744 Views

What is the force on a moving charged particle in a magnetic field, and why is no work done by this force when it accelerates the particle?

A particle with electric charge q , mass m and velocity v in a constant magnetic field B experiences a force due to the field: F = q v X B The ' X ' ( cross-product ) means that the force is always at 90° ( ...
RP
Answered by Rich P. • Physics tutor
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What does the double slit experiment tell us about light?

Imagine an opaque barrier (no light can get through) with two parallel slits in it, onto which we shine a coherent light source (light of only one wavelength and in phase - a laser, for example, can produce ...
AO
Answered by Adam O. • Physics tutor
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Show that the orbital period of a satellite is given by T^2=(4pi^2r^3)/(GM) where r is the orbital radius, G is the gravitational constant and M is the mass of the Earth. Then find the orbital radius of a geostationary satellite.

The first part of this question relies on remembering one key principle which is that for a satellite, or any body orbiting in a circle, centripetal force is provided by gravitational force. The rest is simp...
MH
Answered by Michael H. • Physics tutor
39990 Views

How do you prove Kepler's Third Law?

For starters, what exactly is Kepler's Third Law? Kepler's Third Law states that the square of the time period of orbit is directly proportional to the cuber of the semi-major axis of that respective orbit. ...
DB
Answered by Daniel B. • Physics tutor
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