Properties and Uses of EM Waves

This lesson covers the properties and uses of each part of the electromagnetic spectrum — as required by AQA GCSE Combined Science Trilogy (8464), Physics Paper 2, section 6.2. You need to know at least one use for each type of EM wave and understand how properties such as wavelength and energy determine their applications.

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Uses of Each Type of EM Wave

graph TD
    EM["Electromagnetic Spectrum — Uses"]
    EM --> R["Radio waves"]
    EM --> MW["Microwaves"]
    EM --> IR["Infrared"]
    EM --> VL["Visible light"]
    EM --> UV["Ultraviolet"]
    EM --> XR["X-rays"]
    EM --> GR["Gamma rays"]

    R --> R1["TV and radio broadcasting"]
    R --> R2["Bluetooth and Wi-Fi"]
    MW --> MW1["Satellite communication"]
    MW --> MW2["Cooking food (microwave ovens)"]
    IR --> IR1["Remote controls"]
    IR --> IR2["Thermal imaging / heating"]
    VL --> VL1["Photography / vision"]
    VL --> VL2["Fibre optic communication"]
    UV --> UV1["Fluorescent lamps"]
    UV --> UV2["Detecting forged banknotes"]
    XR --> XR1["Medical imaging (bones)"]
    XR --> XR2["Airport security scanners"]
    GR --> GR1["Cancer treatment (radiotherapy)"]
    GR --> GR2["Sterilising medical equipment"]

    style EM fill:#2c3e50,color:#fff
    style R fill:#e74c3c,color:#fff
    style MW fill:#e67e22,color:#fff
    style IR fill:#f1c40f,color:#333
    style VL fill:#2ecc71,color:#fff
    style UV fill:#3498db,color:#fff
    style XR fill:#9b59b6,color:#fff
    style GR fill:#34495e,color:#fff