After completing the experiment with the single slit, you wish to determine the

Question

After completing the experiment with the single slit, you wish to determine the width of the slit. Recall that the wavelength of the laser light is 632.8 nm.
If the distance from the central spot to the first minimum in intensity is 4.0 cm and the distance from the slit to the central spot on the wall is 2.75 m, what is the width of the slit (in millimeters)?

In order to check the width of the slit you measured above, you try to predict the location of the third diffraction minimum.
What distance do you predict for the distance from the central spot to the third minimum in intensity (in cm).


I have previously asked this question using cramster. The answer is not 4.35*10^-3 mm and 10.9 mm.

Explanation / Answer

The formula for finding the minima for single slit diffraction is...

y = nL/a

We need to find 'a' when given the y value for the first minima

a = nL/y = (1)(2.75)(632.8 X 10-9)/.04 = 4.35 X 10-5 m   which is 4.35 x 10-3 mm

The third minimum will be found by

y = nL/a

y = (3)(2.5)(632.8 X 10-9)/(4.35 X 10-5)

y = .109 m   which is 10.9 cm

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