Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-physics-2-paper-of-the-university-of-oxford/2013/4/1/solution

Let be the single-slit intensities at the two wavelengths. At a screen position , the path difference is approximately , with . Fields from the two slits interfere at each wavelength, while a detector averaging over the optical beat period adds the intensities of the two distinct wavelengths:
For equal single-slit intensities , define and . Then
The first cosine gives the interference visibility envelope. Near the centre one may further replace by . The formula neglects unspecified single-slit envelopes and the slow change of single-slit intensity across the screen.

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