wavelength

(noun)

the length of a single cycle of a wave, as measured by the distance between one peak or trough of a wave and the next; it corresponds to the velocity of the wave divided by its frequency

Related Terms

Examples of wavelength in the following topics:

  • Introduction to Light Energy

    • All electromagnetic radiation, or light energy, travels at a particular wavelength and carries a certain amount of energy.
    • Each type of electromagnetic radiation travels at a particular wavelength.
    • The longer the wavelength, the less energy is carried.
    • This radiation exists at different wavelengths, each of which has its own characteristic energy.
    • All electromagnetic radiation, including visible light, is characterized by its wavelength.

  • Light

    • A wavelength (which varies inversely with frequency) manifests itself as color.
    • Light at the red end of the visible spectrum has longer wavelengths (and is lower frequency), while light at the violet end has shorter wavelengths (and is higher frequency).
    • The wavelength of light is expressed in nanometers (nm); one nanometer is one billionth of a meter.
    • However, some other animals can detect wavelengths outside of the human range.
    • Thus a red object reflects the red wavelengths in mixed (white) light and absorbs all other wavelengths of light.

  • Absorption of Light

    • At the other end of the spectrum, toward red, the wavelengths are longer and have lower energy .
    • Pigments reflect or transmit the wavelengths they cannot absorb, making them appear in the corresponding color.
    • In this way organisms can absorb energy from a wider range of wavelengths.
    • These instruments can differentiate which wavelengths of light a substance can absorb.
    • Violet has the shortest wavelength and, therefore, carries the most energy, whereas red has the longest wavelength and carries the least amount of energy.

  • Sound

    • As is true for all waves, there are four main characteristics of a sound wave: frequency, wavelength, period, and amplitude.
    • High-frequency (≥15.000Hz) sounds are higher-pitched (short wavelength) than low-frequency (long wavelengths; ≤100Hz) sounds.
    • For sound waves, wavelength corresponds to pitch.

  • Plant Responses to Light

    • They can tell the time of day and time of year by sensing and using various wavelengths of sunlight.
    • The chromophore of the photoreceptor absorbs light of specific wavelengths, causing structural changes in the photoreceptor protein.
    • As light filters through the canopy and the blue and red wavelengths are absorbed, the spectrum shifts to the far-red end, shifting the plant community to those plants better adapted to respond to far-red light.

  • Transduction of Light

    • There are three types of cones (with different photopsins) that differ in the wavelength to which they are most responsive .
    • A third group (L cones, or "long" cones) responds maximally to light of longer wavelengths at 560 nm.
    • The colors of the visual spectrum, running from long-wavelength light to short are:
    • Human rod cells and the different types of cone cells each have an optimal wavelength.
    • However, there is considerable overlap in the wavelengths of light detected.

  • Blue Light Response

    • Phototropism is the directional bending of a plant toward or away from a light source of blue wavelengths of light.
    • Like all plant photoreceptors, phototropins consist of a protein portion and a light-absorbing portion, called the chromophore, which senses blue wavelengths of light.
    • Therefore, the chemical signal from the sunlight, which is blue wavelengths of light, was a growth stimulant; the phototropic response involved faster cell elongation on the shaded side than on the illuminated side, causing the plant to bend.

  • The Two Parts of Photosynthesis

    • The two photosystems oxidize different sources of the low-energy electron supply,    deliver their energized electrons to different places, and respond to different wavelengths of light.

  • Structural Adaptations for Land in Seedless Plants

    • This presented an additional challenge to land colonization, which was met by the evolution of biosynthetic pathways for the synthesis of protective flavonoids and other compounds: pigments that absorb UV wavelengths of light and protect the aerial parts of plants from photodynamic damage.

  • Microscopy

    • Electrons have short wavelengths (shorter than photons) that move best in a vacuum, so living cells cannot be viewed with an electron microscope.