Shadows happen when light hits an object that blocks it. For example, when light hits a wall, it creates a shadow on the ground.
Recently, scientists found something surprising. A laser can make its surroundings dark, almost like it creates its own shadow. When two laser beams cross in a special way, one beam can block the other. This creates a shadowed line on a surface.
Physicist Raphael Abrahão from Brookhaven National Laboratory explains this new finding makes us think differently about shadows.
Normally, light waves pass through each other without blocking. But in this experiment, two beams of light interacted differently because of a special material called ruby.
Abrahão and his team used a blue laser and a green laser. The blue laser shone through the ruby while the green laser crossed it. The blue light was blocked where the green light fell, creating a dark line.
This line is a real shadow. It moved with the green laser when it was moved. This discovery could help in new technology, like controlling light in different ways.
Vocabulary List:
- Shadow /ˈʃæd.oʊ/ (noun): A dark area produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
- Laser /ˈleɪ.zɚ/ (noun): A device that generates an intense beam of coherent monochromatic light.
- Interact /ˌɪn.təˈrækt/ (verb): To act upon or influence each other.
- Material /məˈtɪr.i.əl/ (noun): The substance or substances of which a thing is made.
- Discovery /dɪsˈkʌv.ər.i/ (noun): The act of finding or learning something for the first time.
- Technology /tɛkˈnɒl.ə.dʒi/ (noun): The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes especially in industry.
How much do you know?
What causes shadows to occur?
What happens when two laser beams cross in a special way?
Which physicist from Brookhaven National Laboratory is mentioned in the text?
What material played a role in the interaction of the light beams in the experiment?
Which two colors of lasers were used in the experiment?
What could the discovery of creating dark lines with lasers potentially help with?
Shadows are created when light is passed through an object.
Light waves always block each other when they intersect.
The dark line created by the laser beams was not a real shadow.
The discovery made by Abrahão and his team has no potential applications in technology.
The movement of the dark line was independent of the green laser.
The blue laser passed through the ruby without any interactions.
In the experiment, two laser beams crossed in a special way because of a material called .
The blue light was blocked where the light fell, creating a dark line.
The discovery by Abrahão and his team could potentially help in new technology, like controlling light in different ways. This line is a real shadow that moved with the laser.
A laser can make its surroundings dark in a similar way to creating a shadow.
The interaction of the two laser beams was influenced by a special material called .
The dark line created by the laser beams was a real shadow that moved with the laser.
