Infrared light: Difference between revisions

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imported>Petréa Mitchell
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imported>Niek Sanders
(Fixed typo. Added IR subdivisions.)
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In [[physics]], '''infrared (IR) light''' refers to a non-[[visible]] portion of the [[electromagnetic spectrum]] ranging from wavelengths of 750 nm to 1 mm.  The name infrared comes from [[latin|Latin]] ''infra-'' meaning below, i.e., infrared has a lower frequency red in the [[spectrum]].
In [[physics]], '''infrared (IR) light''' refers to a non-[[visible]] portion of the [[electromagnetic spectrum]] ranging from wavelengths of 750 nm to 1 mm.  The name infrared comes from [[latin|Latin]] ''infra-'' meaning below, i.e., infrared has a lower frequency than red in the [[Electromagnetic spectrum|spectrum]].
 
 
Various disciplines further subdivide the IR, but there is no consensus on the divisions.  They vary from discipline-to-discipline and even widely within a given discipline.  The following table shows a typical set of divisions:
 
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name
! Acronym
! Range
|-
|Near Infrared
|NIR
|0.7 - 1.4 microns
|-
|Short-Wave Infrared
|SWIR
|1.4 - 3.0 microns
|-
|Mid-Wave Infrared
|MWIR
|3.0 - 5.0 microns
|-
|Long-Wave Infrared
|LWIR
|5.0 - 20.0 microns
|}
 
 


[[Category: Physics Workgroup]]
[[Category: Physics Workgroup]]
[[Category: CZ Live]]
[[Category: CZ Live]]

Revision as of 14:12, 19 September 2007

In physics, infrared (IR) light refers to a non-visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum ranging from wavelengths of 750 nm to 1 mm. The name infrared comes from Latin infra- meaning below, i.e., infrared has a lower frequency than red in the spectrum.


Various disciplines further subdivide the IR, but there is no consensus on the divisions. They vary from discipline-to-discipline and even widely within a given discipline. The following table shows a typical set of divisions:

Name Acronym Range
Near Infrared NIR 0.7 - 1.4 microns
Short-Wave Infrared SWIR 1.4 - 3.0 microns
Mid-Wave Infrared MWIR 3.0 - 5.0 microns
Long-Wave Infrared LWIR 5.0 - 20.0 microns