It's because light waves reflected from opposite sides of the thin bubble wall interfere with each other. Some wavelengths (colours) cancel each other out, while others are reinforced. The bubble wall is actually a thin film of water, protected from collapsing by …

May 29, 2019 · Have you really looked at a soap bubble? Notice how you can see a bunch of different colors? What about that tiny drop of gasoline in a puddle at the gas station—see the rainbow of colors?

Aug 2, 2023 · That's how water droplets make colored light—but something slightly different is happening in soap bubbles. Photo: Rainbow: The water droplets refract (bend) the shorter wavelengths of light (blue) more than the longer wavelengths (red), so blue is always on the inside of the curve. What is interference?

When light shines onto a bubble it appears to change colour. Unlike those seen in a rainbow, which arise from differential refraction, the colours seen in a soap bubble arise from light wave interference, reflecting off the front and back surfaces of the thin soap film.

In the bath, washing the dishes or playing outside – we all recognise the rainbow sphere of a soap bubble. But soap isn’t rainbow coloured, and neither is water… So what causes the beautiful spectrum on its surface? A soap bubble is an ultra thin film of soapy water which encases a …

Feb 10, 2025 · Depending on the film’s thickness and where you’re looking, different colours bounce back. Because of this variation in thickness and the way each colour of light interacts with the bubble, we see a mix of colours — a rainbow effect. The light we see ranges from 400 nanometers (violet) to 700 nanometers (red) in wavelength.

Mar 13, 2015 · You see different interference colors in bubbles (all the colors of the rainbow!), because the colors you see depend upon the thickness of the soap and water layers that make up the walls of the bubbles. Each individual color corresponds to a particular thickness.

These delicate spheres form when soap molecules stabilize a thin layer of water, creating a film that traps air. What makes bubbles so captivating is their iridescence. As light passes through the soap film, it reflects and refracts, producing shifting rainbow colors.

May 1, 2013 · Have you ever wondered about the different coloured rainbow effect you can see on soap bubbles? The top surface of the oil, which is in contact with air, is acting like a window and reflecting some light, but so is the bottom surface of the oil.

Beautiful rainbow-like colors are generated because the light reflected on both surfaces of soap bubbles interfere with one another, emphasizing the light. The colors you see depend on the viewing direction and angle, as well as on the film thickness of the soap bubble.