Science Notes–Reflection

Light waves travel through space in a straight line and will continue to do so unless diverted from their
original direction. A change in direction takes place when light strikes and rebounds from a surface or
boundary between two media. A change in direction from this method is known as reflection.

Reflection can be thought of as light “bouncing off” a surface. However, it’s much more complicated and
involves the absorption and emission of complex atomic vibrations of the reflecting medium/media. The
describe reflection in simple terms, we consider the reflection of light rays in a manner that does not
acknowledge light’s wave nature. A ray is a straight line that represents the motion of light. A beam of
light may be represented by a group of parallel rays. An incident light ray is reflected from a surface in a
particular way. The angles of the incident and reflected rays are measured relative to the normal, a line
perpendicular to the reflecting surface. The law of reflection states:
“The angle of reflection θr equal to the angle of incidence θi.”
The reflected and incident rays are on the same plane.
The reflection from very smooth surfaces is called regular or specular reflection. In regular reflection,
incident parallel rays are parallel on reflection. however, rays reflected from relatively rough surfaces
aren’t parallel, and this is called irregular or diffuse reflection. The reflection from a pages of a book is
diffuse. The law of reflection applies to each type of reflection, but the rough surface causes the light
rays to be reflected in different directions. Rays can be used to determine the image formed by a mirror.
A ray diagram for determining the apparent location of an image formed by a plane mirror is used to
trace reflected rays and locate the mirror images where the rays intersect or appear to intersect behind
the mirror. A ray diagram for the light rays involved when a person sees a complete or head-to-toe
image. Applying the law of reflection reveals that you can see your total image in a plane mirror that is
only half your height. Also, that your distance from the mirror is not a factor.