Differences between Interference and DiffractionDifference 1: OriginInterference:
Produced due to superposition of light waves coming from two or more coherent sources.
Diffraction:
Produced due to interference among secondary wavelets originating from different parts of the same wavefront.
Difference 2: Intensity DistributionInterference:
All bright fringes have nearly equal intensity when the sources are of equal strength.
Diffraction:
Central maximum is the brightest and successive maxima decrease in intensity.
Difference 3: Fringe WidthInterference:
All fringes are equally spaced.
Diffraction:
Central maximum is twice as wide as the secondary maxima.
Difference 4: RequirementInterference:
Requires two coherent sources.
Diffraction:
Can be observed with a single slit.