In the 1860s, James Clerk Maxwell carried out important investigations on the nature of light when he
A) demonstrated the wave nature of light by passing light through two slits and obtained a pattern of bright and dark bands on a screen that he correctly interpreted as interference between the two light beams.
B) demonstrated that white light was made up of colors that could be split by a prism and that these colors were not produced by the glass through which the light passed.
C) proved mathematically that light could be described by oscillating electric and magnetic fields.
D) showed that a prism through which light passed added a spectrum of colors to the light.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

James Clerk Maxwell is renowned for his formulation of the theory of electromagnetism, which included the mathematical proof that light is an electromagnetic wave, described by oscillating electric and magnetic fields. This was a fundamental contribution to the understanding of the nature of light.

In the 1860s, James Clerk Maxwell Carried Out Important Investigations