Semester 1 2018/2019

TUTORIAL 3 (ZCT103/3)

Q1. A light ray initially in water enters a transparent substance at an angle of

incidence of 37.0°, and the transmitted ray is refracted at an angle of 25.0°.
Calculate the speed of light in the transparent substance (nwater = 1.33).

Q2. A laser beam is incident at an angle of 30.0° from the vertical onto a
solution of corn syrup in water. The beam is refracted to 19.24° from the
vertical. (a) What is the index of refraction of the corn syrup solution?

Assume that the light is red, with vacuum wavelength 632.8 nm. Find its (b)
wavelength, (c) frequency, and (d) speed in the solution

Q3. In a handheld optical instrument used under water, light is incident from the
water onto the plane surface of flint glass at an angle of incidence of 45o. (nwater
= 1.33, nflint glass =1.63)

(a) What is the angle of reflection of light off the flint glass?
(b) Does the refracted ray bend toward or away from the normal?
(c) What is the angle of refraction in the flint glass?

Q4. The wavelength of red helium–neon laser light in air is 632.8 nm. (a) What
is its frequency? (b) What is its wavelength in glass that has an index of
refraction of 1.50? (c) What is its speed in the glass?

1
Q5. In an experiment to measure the speed of light using the apparatus of
Fizeau (see figure 1), the distance between light source and mirror was 11.45
km (d) and the wheel had 720 notches. The experimentally determined value of
c was 2.998 x 108 m/s when the outgoing light passed through one notch and
then returned through the next notch. Calculate the minimum angular speed of
the wheel for this experiment.

Figure 1

Q6. An optical fibre is made up of a core, where light travels, made of glass of
refractive index n1 = 1.5 surrounded by another layer of glass (cladding) of
lower refractive index n2.

Figure 2

a) Find the refractive index n2 of the cladding so that the critical angle at the
interface core cladding is 80 °.

b) α is the angle made by the ray with the axis of the fibre. For what values of α
is the incident angle  larger that the critical angle found in part (a) above.