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PHYSICS 1b REVISION NOTES – EM SPECTRUM AND BIG BANG

NB You must revise the ISA scientific vocabulary as well. There will be questions (usually
early on in the paper) that ask about types of variables, fairness, accuracy, bias, etc.

Basic measurements
Amplitude = height of wave (measured from central line or equilibrium position)
Frequency = number of waves or vibrations per second (measured in hertz, Hz)
Wavelength = distance between two neighbouring waves (usually between two peaks or
two troughs) (metres, m)
Wave speed = speed (distance per second) travelled by the wave and the energy that it
carries (metres per second, m/s)

Wave speed = frequency x wavelength (this formula will be given to you in the exam)

Waves that have a high frequency have a small wavelength (this fact you need to know).

EM spectrum
Radio waves  microwaves  infra-red  visible light  ultra-violet  X-rays  gamma radiation

Large wavelength Small wavelength

Low frequency High frequency

You should be able to put the types of EM radiation in order, and be able to say which have the
biggest wavelength and/or frequency.
All these waves have the same speed in a vacuum (such as in space).

Radio waves
- Can be used for communication (e.g. radio signals and some TV signals).
- Reflect from the ionosphere (charged layer in the Earth’s atmosphere). This means that they
can be bounced around the world, but cannot be used to communicate with satellites as
satellites orbit above the atmosphere.
- Absorbed by aerials (lengths of wire). The radio wave is converted into an oscillating
(alternating) electrical current with the same frequency as the radio wave. (Please learn
this word-for-word). The aerial also gets hotter.
- Not easily absorbed by human tissue and so safe.

Microwaves
- Can be used for communication (e.g. mobile ‘phone signals and satellite TV).
- Do not reflect from the ionosphere so can be used to communicate with satellites.
- Absorbed by aerials (lengths of wire). The microwave is converted into an oscillating
(alternating) electrical current with the same frequency as the radio wave. (Please learn
this word-for-word). The aerial also gets hotter.
- Some microwave frequencies (not those used for communication) can be absorbed by water
molecules in human tissue. This gives the water molecules kinetic energy by making them
vibrate, and this then generates heat  burns (microwave ovens heat the water in food).

Infra-red
- Hot objects emit IR
- Can be used for communication (e.g. TV remote controls, Bluetooth and in optical fibres).
- Absorbed by human tissue and other materials (especially dark surfaces) and can generate
heat  burns.

Visible light
- Can be used for communication (e.g. in optical fibres)
- Can be seen by the human eye (duh!)

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- Visible spectrum = red  orange  yellow  green  blue  indigo  violet. Each colour
has its own frequency and wavelength.
Ultra-violet
- Sources include the Sun, UV lamps and sunbeds
- When absorbed by some chemicals, it is changed into visible light and makes things glow
(fluoresce).
- Can damage cells (it is ionising radiation) and lead to cell death or cancer. (Also some heat.)

X-rays
- Used in medical imaging (blocked by bones, passes more easily through tissue)
- Can damage cells and lead to cell death or cancer. It is more ionising than UV. (Also heat.)

Gamma radiation
- Nuclear radiation
- Can damage cells and lead to cell death or cancer. The most ionising radiation. (Also heat.)

In all cases, the effect on the human body (heating, cell death, chance of getting cancer) is greater if
the body absorbs a greater dose of radiation i.e. the radiation is more intense (stronger) or the time of
exposure is longer.

Optic fibres
- Use infra-red or visible light
- Light reflects from the side of the optical fibre

Analogue and digital signals

- All signals can pick up “noise” (unwanted extra signals) between transmitter and receiver.
- Analogue signals have an amplitude that varies continuously (learn this, please) and a
non-noisy analogue signal looks like a classical wave.
- You cannot remove noise from an analogue signal  “interference” or “static”
- Digital signals have an amplitude that can only take certain values (usually ON and OFF) and
so a non-noisy digital signal looks like a “square” wave
- You can easily remove noise from a digital signal  clearer communications

Analogue signal Analogue + noise Digital signal Digital + noise

Telescopes
- Can use any part of the EM spectrum (e.g. radio, IR or X-ray telescopes)
- Often work best in orbit around the Earth as the atmosphere doesn’t affect the radiation (e.g.
absorb it, scatter it, block it with dust). However, it is more expensive to put them in space,
they cannot be maintained easily, and you cannot put really large telescopes into orbit.
- The Hubble space telescope has allowed us to see furthest into the Universe.

The Big Bang theory

- Almost all galaxies are moving away from the Earth. We can see this because the light from
these galaxies has a larger wavelength and lower frequency than expected. It has been
red-shifted. (Learn this – it crops up a lot.)
- Galaxies that are more distant have a bigger red-shift. This means that they are moving
away from us faster.
- The simplest explanation of these observations is the Big Bang theory. This says that the
Universe began from a small initial point and then expanded outwards. The galaxies are still
expanding outwards today. It is “only” a theory, but is has reliable evidence to support it.

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- A few nearby galaxies are blue-shifted i.e. they are moving towards us. This is due to the
gravitational pull between our galaxy (the Milky Way) and the other galaxies.

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