9_4_From_Ideas_to_Implementation

NSW Board of Studies - HSC Physics
=Core 9.4 - From Ideas to Implementation=

//Contextual Outline:

By the beginning of the twentieth century, many of the pieces of the physics puzzle seemed to be falling into place. The wave model of light had successfully explained interference and diffraction, and wavelengths at the extremes of the visible spectrum had been estimated. The invention of a pump that would evacuate tubes to 10^-4 atmospheres allowed the investigation of cathode rays. X-rays would soon be confirmed as electromagnetic radiation and patterns in the Periodic Table appeared to be nearly complete. The nature of cathode rays was resolved with the measurement of the charge on the electron soon to follow. There was a small number of experimental observations still unexplained but this, apparently complete, understanding of the world of the atom was about to be challenged.

The exploration of the atom was well and truly inward bound by this time and, as access to greater amounts of energy became available, the journey of physics moved further and further into the study of subatomic particles. Careful observation, analysis, imagination and creativity throughout the early part of the twentieth century developed a more complete picture of the nature of electromagnetic radiation and matter. The journey taken into the world of the atom has not remained isolated in laboratories. The phenomena discovered by physicists have, with increasing speed, been channelled into technologies, such as computers, to which society has ever-increasing access. These technologies have, in turn, often assisted physicists in their search for further knowledge and understanding of natural phenomena at the sub-atomic level//

Taken from Physics Syllabus @ [|Board of Studies]

Student Task - Research one of the topics listed below (given by teacher) and write a brief set of notes for the topic given. These notes will become the notes for your topic. Remeber to acknowledge where information is from. Do not just copy and paste as it is plagerism.

Topics:

1. Increased understandings of cathode rays led to the development of television 2. The reconceptualisation of the model of light led to an understanding of the photoelectric effect and black body radiation 3. Limitations of past technologies and increased research into the structure of the atom resulted in the invention of transistors 4. Investigations into the electrical properties of particular metals at different temperatures led to the identification of superconductivity and the exploration of possible applications