Question

Which of the following statements about radio waves, infrared radiation, and XX-rays are correct? Choose all that apply.

a. They all have the same wavelength in vacuum.
b. They all have exactly the same speed as visible light in vacuum.
c. The short-wavelength X-rays travel faster through a vacuum than the long-wavelength radio waves.
d. They all have the same frequency in a vacuum.

Answer 1

Radio waves, infrared radiation, and X-rays differ in their wavelength, speed, and frequency. X-rays travel faster in a vacuum than radio waves and infrared radiation. They do not have the same wavelength or frequency in a vacuum.

Step-by-step explanation:

Radio waves, infrared radiation, and X-rays are all forms of electromagnetic radiation, but they differ in their wavelength and frequency.

(a) is incorrect because they do not have the same wavelength in a vacuum. Radio waves have longer wavelengths than infrared radiation, and X-rays have shorter wavelengths than both radio waves and infrared radiation.

(b) is also incorrect because they do not have exactly the same speed as visible light in a vacuum. The speed of electromagnetic radiation in a vacuum is always the same, which is the speed of light (c), but the wavelength and frequency can vary.

(c) is correct. X-rays, with their shorter wavelength, travel faster through a vacuum than radio waves with their longer wavelength.

(d) is incorrect because they do not have the same frequency in a vacuum. The frequency of electromagnetic radiation is inversely proportional to its wavelength, so longer-wavelength radio waves have lower frequencies than shorter-wavelength X-rays.

Answer 2

b. They all have exactly the same speed as visible light in vacuum.

c. The short-wavelength X-rays travel faster through a vacuum than the long-wavelength radio waves.

Step-by-step explanation:

Part (a) They all have the same wavelength in vacuum;

wrong: They are electromagnetic wave and requires no material medium for their propagation, they always have varying wavelength.

Part (b) They all have exactly the same speed as visible light in vacuum;

Correct: They travel with the speed of light which is 3 x 10⁸ m/s

Part (c) The short-wavelength X-rays travel faster through a vacuum than the long-wavelength radio waves.

Correct : velocity of the wave is the product of frequency and wavelength, due to high frequency of X-rays, it penetrate faster than radio wave in vacuum.

Part (d) They all have the same frequency in a vacuum.

wrong: they always have varying frequency in vacuum, with X -rays being the highest while radio waves are the least.