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Go Enzo Nathan - FA#8 - Activity 1.8 - Reflection and Refraction

The document discusses the concepts of reflection and refraction of light. It defines key terms like angle of incidence, reflection, refraction, and critical angle. It also provides the laws of reflection and refraction, which relate the angles of incident, reflected, and refracted light. Sample problems are included to demonstrate how to apply these laws to calculate angles using refractive indexes of different materials.

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32 views

Go Enzo Nathan - FA#8 - Activity 1.8 - Reflection and Refraction

The document discusses the concepts of reflection and refraction of light. It defines key terms like angle of incidence, reflection, refraction, and critical angle. It also provides the laws of reflection and refraction, which relate the angles of incident, reflected, and refracted light. Sample problems are included to demonstrate how to apply these laws to calculate angles using refractive indexes of different materials.

Uploaded by

enzonathan.go
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Name: Enzo Nathan Go Date: November 5, 2022

Grade and Section:12-B Schedule: __________

Activity 1.8: Reflection and Refraction

Photo credits: UCLA Physics and Astronomy

Light as a wave is well established to exhibit reflection and refraction phenomena. When
light is incident to a surface it is reflected according to the condition of the surface. If the surface is
smooth, then specular reflection occurs while diffused reflection occurs on a rough surface. If the
light is incident to a transparent or semi-transparent media, partial reflection and refraction occur,
wherein the light is partially reflected creating an image of reflection and another image is
observed by an observer on the other side of the media(refracted image). When light is refracted,
it changes its angle depending on the boundary conditions between two media. The velocity of
light also is affected by the media and is expressed in a ratio called the index of refraction.

Index of Refraction:

𝑐
n= 𝑣
c = Speed of light in vacuum
v = Speed of light in the media
LAW OF REFLECTION AND REFRACTION:
The incident, reflected, and refracted rays must be drawn in the same plane where the
object is in a diagram. The following law applies to the incident, reflected and refracted rays.

1. The angle of reflection θR is equal to the angle of incidence θi for all wavelengths of any
material.
Law of Reflection θR = θi

2. The ratio of sines of the angle measured from the normal line is equal to the
inverse ratio of the indexes of refraction.
𝑠𝑖𝑛θ1 𝑛2
Law of Refraction 𝑠𝑖𝑛θ2
= 𝑛1

It can be also written as

n1sinθ1 = n2sinθ2
Where:
n1 = Index of refraction of medium 1
n2 = Index of refraction of medium 2
θ1 = Angle of incidence
θ2 = Angle of refraction

The different substance has a different


refractive index so the angles of refraction
of light will also vary depending on the
media involved. Below is a sketch of what
will happen to the angle of refraction
based on a certain condition set by the
refractive indexes of different substances.

Since the speed of a wave is altered


during refraction, the wavelength of the
light is also affected correspondingly.
Recall that the frequency of a wave does
not change when it travels from one media
to another. Thus, in the relationship:
v = λ𝑓
Where:

f = frequency (ratio of velocity of light)


λ = wavelength ( constant whether the light is travelling at a certain media or vacuum.

Where λ0 is the wavelength of the light in vacuum and λ is the wavelength in the medium where:
λ0 > λ , thus

So, the wavelength of light in a new material will be:

TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION


TIR is a phenomenon wherein the light is totally reflected from the interface and no
partial refraction happens. This technology is used in fiber optics where light is reflected
inside the wire and transmits data at a faster rate compared to electrical signals. for TIR to
occur, the right angle of incidence should be obtained that results to an angle of reflection
called the critical angle (θ𝑅 = 900). At this angle, al the light will travel parallel to the
interface, and none will be refracted out of the interface. Adjusting the angle further
enable TIR where all light is reflected back within the medium where the light source is
contained. TIR is shown below.
SAMPLE PROBLEMS:
Show your solution and round off your final answers to their correct significant
figure.

1. A ray of light is incident towards a plane mirror at an angle of 300 with the
mirror surface. What will be the angle of reflection?
_____________________________________________
2. A light ray strikes a reflective plane surface at an angle of 540 with the
surface.
a. Calculate the angle of incidence: _______
b. Calculate the angle of reflection: ________
c. Calculate the angle made by the reflected ray and the surface: _______
d. Calculate the angle made by the incident and reflected rays: ________

3. Find the angle (α) by the system of the two mirrors shown in the figure above
so that the incident ray at A and reflected ray at B are parallel.

4. Light passes from air (n=1.00) into a crown glass (n=1.52) at an angle of
55.00. What is the angle of refraction?

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