EM Waves & Matter Flashcards

All 5 cards in this deck

Name the four things a substance may do to an electromagnetic wave that reaches it.

Absorb it, transmit it, refract it or reflect it.

True or false? A substance treats all parts of the electromagnetic spectrum in the same way.

False. Whether a substance absorbs, transmits, refracts or reflects a wave varies with the wavelength.

What happens to infrared, and to radio waves, when they meet an object such as an armchair?

Infrared is absorbed/blocked (it needs line of sight); radio waves are transmitted through it.

As the wavelength of ultraviolet gets shorter, what happens to how much of it a substance such as glass transmits?

Less is transmitted and more is absorbed — absorption increases as wavelength decreases.

True or false? Sunglasses with photochromic lenses darken because they react to ultraviolet.

True. The darkened lenses then absorb more light and protect the eyes from UV damage.