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Old 17-11-2007, 04:06 PM
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avandonk
avandonk

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Alex the number of slits is immaterial. You will always get diffraction. The pattern will change in a mathematically predictable ways. The variables basically being the ratio of the width of the slits and their separation and the 'wavelength' of the incoming 'wave'.

I used to solve the atomic structure of protein molecules using xray diffraction. You could think of the protein crystal as being a three dimensional array of protein molecules and the diffraction pattern that was also in three dimensions had spots whos spacing depended on the spacing of the protein molecules. The intensity of the spots give you information about the electron density in the PM and hence the position of the atoms.

When you have slits or rectangular apertures the resulting diffraction pattern is described by sin to some power functions and in the case of circular apertures Bessel functions of the first kind. I am going on a fading memory here. I would have to look it up as I did this stuff in the late sixties early seventies.


Bert
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