![]() Other materials, like water or tinted glass, will only let some light through and others like wood or metal will completely block visible light. Some materials, like air or clear glass, let visible light pass through with hardly any attenuation at all. Humans are most familiar with visible light since that is what we can see with our eyes, but there are many other types of radiation, including radio waves, that we cannot see (image credit NASA, Wikimedia Commons users InductiveLoad and NI47).Įlectromagnetic radiation can be attenuated, or weakened, when it passes through different materials. Each type of radiation has a different frequency. A diagram explaining the electromagnetic spectrum. ![]() Radio waves have the largest Wavelength (on the scale of large buildings), while gamma rays have the smallest wavelength (on the scale of atomic nuclei).įigure 1. Giga is the metric prefix for one billion (1,000,000,000, or 10 9).ĭiagram of the electromagnetic spectrum with radiation type, wavelength, approximate scale of wavelength, and frequency. Wi-Fi devices operate at either 2.4 or 5 gigahertz (GHz). Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz), so one hertz (1 Hz) is one cycle per second. Each part of the electromagnetic spectrum has a different frequency, or number of waves per second. You are already very familiar with one type of electromagnetic radiation: visible light! Visible light and radio waves are just different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum (see Figure 1). Wi-Fi devices do this using radio waves, which are a type of electromagnetic radiation. Wi-Fi is the common name for a type of communication that allows electronic devices to exchange data or connect to the Internet wirelessly, meaning they do not need to connect to each other with cables. Before you start, you will need to learn a little more background information about Wi-Fi. Have you ever been frustrated by a poor-quality or slow connection? In this science project, you will learn about one aspect of getting good reception: materials that can physically block Wi-Fi signals.
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