When light passes through a prism, it bends and splits into different colors. This effect is called dispersion.
Simple Explanation:
- A prism is a transparent, triangular glass or plastic object.
- When white light enters the prism, it slows down and bends (refracts) because of the change in medium (air to glass).
- Different colors in white light bend by different amounts:
- Violet bends the most
- Red bends the least
- As a result, the light spreads out into a rainbow of colors: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet (ROYGBIV).
Key Effect:
- The prism separates white light into its component colors.
- This shows that white light is made of many colors.
This beautiful spreading of colors is often seen in rainbows and optical experiments.