Light exhibits properties similar to waves, such as diffraction, which is the bending of light around corners or through small apertures, particularly when the aperture is smaller than the wavelength of the light. This lab involved the use of a diffraction grating to create a pattern of multiple slit diffraction. As light encounters the grating, it either passes through the slits or is absorbed or reflected by the material between the slits. At certain points along the forward path, the light waves from the slits will overlap and interfere constructively, aligning in phase and producing bright spots on a wall. This phenomenon is described by the equation dsin = m, which relates the distance between slits (d), the angle of diffraction (), the order of the fringe (m), and the wavelength of the light (). For small angles, sin can be approximated by tan, which equals y/L, where y is the distance between a fringe and the central maximum, and L is the distance from the grating to the wall. This approximation leads to the equation d(y/L) = m, which was used in this experiment to determine the wavelength of light from a laser pointer and the longest and shortest wavelengths from an incandescent light source. The experimental wavelengths were then compared to known values to calculate the percent error. paraphrase