Total internal reflection

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Fig. 1: Underwater plants in an aquarium, and their inverted images (top) formed by total internal reflection in the water-air surface.

Total Internal Reflection (TIR) is the total reflection of a wave incident at a sufficiently oblique
angle on the interface between two media, of which the second ("external") medium is
transparent to such waves but has a higher wave velocity than the first ("internal") medium. TIR
is the phenomenon that makes the water-to-air surface in a fish-tank look like a perfectly silvered
mirror when viewed from below the water level (Fig. 1). It occurs not only
with electromagnetic waves such as light waves and microwaves, but also with other types of
waves, including sound and water waves. In the case of a narrow train of waves, such as
a laser beam (Fig. 2), we tend to describe the reflection in terms of "rays" rather than waves.
Fig. 2: Repeated total internal reflection of a 405 nm laser beam between the front and back surfaces of a glass pane. The color of the

laser light itself is deep violet; but its wavelength is short enough to cause fluorescence in the glass, which re-radiates greenish light in

all directions, rendering the zigzag beam visible.

Refraction is generally accompanied by partial reflection. When a wavetrain is refracted from a

medium of lower propagation speed (higher refractive index) to a medium of higher propagation
speed (lower refractive index), the angle of refraction (between the refracted ray and
the normal to the refracting interface) is greater than the angle of incidence (between the incident
ray and the normal to the interface). Hence, as the angle of incidence approaches a certain limit,
called the critical angle, the angle of refraction approaches 90°, at which the refracted ray
becomes tangential to the interface. As the angle of incidence increases beyond the critical
angle, the conditions of refraction can no longer be satisfied; so we have no refracted ray, and
the partial reflection becomes total. In an isotropic medium such as air, water, or glass,
the ray direction is simply the direction normal to the wavefront.
If the internal and external media are isotropic with refractive indices n1 and n2 respectively, the
critical angle is given by , and is defined if n2 ≤ n1.  For example, for visible light, the critical angle
is about 49° for incidence from water to air, and about 42° for incidence from common glass to
air.
Details of the mechanism of TIR give rise to more subtle phenomena. While total reflection, by
definition, involves absolutely no continuing transfer of power across the interface, the external
medium carries a so-called evanescent wave, which travels along the interface with an amplitude
that falls off exponentially with distance from the interface. The "total" reflection is indeed total if
the external medium is lossless (perfectly transparent), continuous, and of infinite extent, but can
be conspicuously less than total if the evanescent wave is absorbed by a lossy external medium
("attenuated total reflectance"), or diverted by the outer boundary of the external medium or by
objects embedded in that medium ("frustrated" TIR). Unlike partial reflection between transparent
media, total internal reflection is accompanied by a non-trivial phase shift (not just zero or 180°)
for each component of polarization (normal or parallel to the plane of incidence), and the shifts
vary with the angle of incidence. The explanation of this effect by Augustin-Jean Fresnel, in
1823, added to the evidence in favor of the wave theory of light.
The phase shifts are utilized by Fresnel's invention, the Fresnel rhomb, to modify polarization.
The efficiency of the reflection is exploited by optical fibers (used in telecommunications
cables and in image-forming fiberscopes), and by reflective prisms, such as erecting prisms
for binoculars.

Optical description[edit]
Although total internal reflection can occur with any kind of wave that can be said to have oblique
incidence, including (e.g.) microwaves and sound waves,   it is most familiar in the case
[1] [2]

of light waves.
Total internal reflection of light can be demonstrated using a semicircular-cylindrical block of
common glass or acrylic glass. In Fig. 3, a "ray box" projects a narrow beam of light (a "ray")
radially inward. The semicircular cross-section of the glass allows the incoming ray to remain
perpendicular to the curved portion of the air/glass surface, and thence to continue in a straight
line towards the flat part of the surface, although its angle with the flat part varies.
Where the ray meets the flat glass-to-air interface, the angle between the ray and the normal to
the interface is called the angle of incidence. If this angle is sufficiently small, the ray
[3]

is partly reflected but mostly transmitted, and the transmitted portion is refracted away from the
normal, so that the angle of refraction (between the refracted ray and the normal to the interface)
is greater than the angle of incidence. For the moment, let us call the angle of incidence θ and i

the angle of refraction θ (where t is for transmitted, reserving r for reflected). As θ increases and
t i

approaches a certain "critical angle", denoted by θ (or sometimes θ ), the angle of refraction
c cr
 approaches 90° (that is, the refracted ray approaches a tangent to the interface), and the
refracted ray becomes fainter while the reflected ray becomes brighter. As θ increases [4]
i

beyond θ , the refracted ray disappears and only the reflected ray remains, so that all of the
c

energy of the incident ray is reflected; this is total internal reflection (TIR). In brief:

 If  θ < θ , the incident ray is split, being partly reflected and partly refracted;
i c

 If  θ > θ , the incident ray suffers total internal reflection (TIR); none of it is transmitted.
i c

Critical angle[edit]
The critical angle is the smallest angle of incidence that yields total reflection. For light waves [5]

and other electromagnetic waves in isotropic media, there is a well-known formula for the critical
angle in terms of the refractive indices. For some other types of waves, it is more convenient to
think in terms of propagation velocities rather than refractive indices. The latter approach is more
direct and more general, and will therefore be discussed first.

Fig. 4: Refraction of a wavefront (red) from a medium with lower normal velocity v1 to a medium with higher normal velocity v2. The incident and refracted segments of the

wavefront meet in a common line L (seen "end-on"), which travels at velocity u.

When a wavefront is refracted from one medium to another, the incident (incoming) and refracted
(outgoing) portions of the wavefront meet at a common line on the refracting surface (interface).
Let this line, denoted by L, move at velocity u across the surface, where u is measured normal
[6][7]

to L (Fig. 4). Let the incident and refracted wavefronts propagate with normal
velocities and (respectively), and let them make the dihedral angles θ and θ (respectively) with 1 2

the interface. From the geometry, is the component of u in the direction normal to the incident
wave, so that . Similarly, . Solving each equation for 1/u and equating the results, we obtain the
general law of refraction for waves:
(1
.
)

But the dihedral angle between two planes is also the angle between their normals. So θ is 1

the angle between the normal to the incident wavefront and the normal to the interface,
while θ is the angle between the normal to the refracted wavefront and the normal to the
2

interface; and Eq. (1) tells us that the sines of these angles are in the same ratio as the
respective velocities. [8]

This result has the form of "Snell's law", except that we have not yet said that the ratio of
velocities is constant, nor identified θ and θ with the angles of incidence and refraction
1 2

(called θ and θ above). However, if we now suppose that the media are isotropic, two further
i t

conclusions follow: first, the two velocities, and hence their ratio, are independent of their
directions; and second, the wave-normal directions coincide with the ray directions, so
that θ and θ coincide with the angles of incidence and refraction as defined above.
1 2
[Note 1]
 Fig. 5: Behavior of a ray incident from a medium of higher refractive index n1 to a medium of lower refractive index n2 ,  at

increasing angles of incidence.[Note 2]

Fig. 6: The angle of refraction for grazing incidence from air to water  is the critical angle for incidence from water to air.

Obviously the angle of refraction cannot exceed 90°. In the limiting case, we put θ2 =
90° and θ1 = θc in Eq. (1), and solve for the critical angle:
(2
.
)

In deriving this result, we retain the assumption of isotropic media in order to

identify θ and θ with the angles of incidence and refraction.
1 2
[Note 3]

For electromagnetic waves, and especially for light, it is customary to express the above
results in terms of refractive indices. The refractive index of a medium with normal
velocity is defined as , where c is the speed of light in a vacuum.
  Hence .  Similarly, .  Making these substitutions in Eqs. (1) and (2), we obtain
[9]

(3
)

and
(4
.
)

Eq. (3) is the law of refraction for general media, in terms of refractive indices,
provided that θ and θ are taken as the dihedral angles; but if the media
1 2
are isotropic, then n1 and n2 become independent of direction while θ and θ may 1 2

be taken as the angles of incidence and refraction for the rays, and Eq. (4)
follows. So, for isotropic media, Eqs. (3) and (4) together describe the behavior
in Fig. 5.
According to Eq. (4), for incidence from water (n1 ≈ 1.333) to air (n2 ≈ 1), we
have θc ≈ 48.6°, whereas for incidence from common glass or acrylic (n1 ≈ 1.50) to
air (n2 ≈ 1), we have θc ≈ 41.8°.
The arcsin function yielding θ is defined only if n2 ≤ n1  .  Hence, for isotropic
c

media, total internal reflection cannot occur if the second medium has a higher
refractive index (lower normal velocity) than the first. For example, there cannot
be TIR for incidence from air to water; rather, the critical angle for incidence from
water to air is the angle of refraction at grazing incidence from air to water
(Fig. 6). [10]

The medium with the higher refractive index is commonly described as

optically denser, and the one with the lower refractive index as optically rarer.
Hence it is said that total internal reflection is possible for "dense-to-rare"
[11]

incidence, but not for "rare-to-dense" incidence.

Everyday examples[edit]

Fig. 7: Total internal reflection by the water's surface at the shallow end of a swimming pool. The broad

bubble-like apparition between the swimmer and her reflection  is merely a disturbance of the reflecting

surface. Some of the space above the water level can be seen through "Snell's window" at the top of the

frame.

When standing beside an aquarium with one's eyes below the water level, one is
likely to see fish or submerged objects reflected in the water-air surface (Fig. 1).
The brightness of the reflected image — just as bright as the "direct" view — can
be startling.
A similar effect can be observed by opening one's eyes while swimming just
below the water's surface. If the water is calm, the surface outside the critical
angle (measured from the vertical) appears mirror-like, reflecting objects below.
The region above the water cannot be seen except overhead, where the
hemispherical field of view is compressed into a conical field known
 as Snell's window, whose angular diameter is twice the critical angle (cf. Fig. 6).
  The field of view above the water is theoretically 180° across, but seems less
[12]

because as we look closer to the horizon, the vertical dimension is more strongly
compressed by the refraction; e.g., by Eq. (3), for air-to-water incident angles of
90°, 80°, and 70°, the corresponding angles of refraction are 48.6° (θ in Fig. 6),
cr

47.6°, and 44.8°, indicating that the image of a point 20° above the horizon is
3.8° from the edge of Snell's window while the image of a point 10° above the
horizon is only 1° from the edge. [13]

Fig. 7, for example, is a photograph taken near the bottom of the shallow end of
a swimming pool. What looks like a broad horizontal stripe on the right-hand
wall consists of the lower edges of a row of orange tiles, and their reflections;
this marks the water level, which can then be traced across the other wall. The
swimmer has disturbed the surface above her, scrambling the lower half of her
reflection, and distorting the reflection of the ladder (to the right). But most of the
surface is still calm, giving a clear reflection of the tiled bottom of the pool. The
space above the water is not visible except at the top of the frame, where the
handles of the ladder are just discernible above the edge of Snell's window.

Fig. 8: A round "brilliant"- cut diamond.

The critical angle influences the angles at which gemstones are cut. The round
"brilliant" cut, for example, is designed to refract light incident on the front facets,
reflect it twice by TIR off the back facets, and transmit it out again through the
front facets, so that the stone looks bright. Diamond (Fig. 8) is especially suitable
for this treatment, because its high refractive index (about 2.42) and
consequently small critical angle (about 24.5°) yield the desired behavior over a
wide range of viewing angles. Cheaper materials that are similarly amenable to
[14]

this treatment include cubic zirconia (index ≈ 2.15) and moissanite (non-

isotropic, hence doubly refractive, with an index ranging from about 2.65 to 2.69,
depending on direction and polarization); both of these are therefore popular
[Note 4]

as diamond simulants.

Applications of Total Internal Reflection

1. Totally Reflection Prism :

 To deviate a ray of light through 90o and 180o.
A right angled isosceles prism can be used to cause total
internal reflection. In such a right angled prism when a ray of
light is incident normally to its face AB, it passes into prism
as incidence is 45o. But for glass (), the value of critical
angle is about 41.8o. Since the value of incident angle is
greater than the critical angle for glass, the ray of right suffers
total internal refection. As a result, it gets incident on the force
AC at 90o and comes out of the prism as such. It follows that
the path of the ray of right was been deviated by the prism
through 90o.
The path of a ray undergoing a deviation of 90 o due to one
internal reflection but in same way and by same process due
to two internal reflection, a ray can be deviated through 180 o.
This arrangement is used in prism-binoculars.
Advantages of Totally Reflecting Prism over the Silvered
Plane Mirror.
 A reflecting prism does not require any silvering.
 A silvered plane mirror always absorbs some light. In a
good mirror, the reflection of light about 90-95%. However, in
a reflecting prism, almost 100% reflection is secured.
 Due to imperfect and non-uniform silvering of the
mirror, the image obtained with a mirror is oftenly not of a
good quality.
2. Mirage :
It is an optical illusion observed in desert in a hot day. The
object such as tree is observed inverted and observer gets an
impression that there is a pool of water. This phenomena is
known as mirage.
Due to intense heat, the surface of earth becomes quite hot
and the temperature of air near the surface of earth is max.
The temp of the other layers of the air goes on decreasing as
one goes up. Dimity as well as refractive index of air
increases slightly for higher layers. Thus a ray of light
traveling from point O of a tree passes through air of
gradually decreasing refractive index and is therefore
refracted more and more away from the normal and
accordingly the angle of incidence goes on increasing. At a
layer, when the angle of incidence becomes greater than the
critical angle, total internal reflection takes place. Then the ray
of light starts traversing layers of increasing refractive index
and goes on bending more and more towards the normal.
Ultimately, when the ray reaches the eye of the observer, it
appears to be coming from the point I. Hence the inverted
image of the tree produces the impression of reflection from a
pool of water.
3. Brilliance of Diamonds and Other Precious Stones :
Diamond shines very brightly because it has a very high
refractive index and very low critical angle i.e. = 2.47 & C =
230 . Dur to low critical angle, a diamond cut so as to have a
large number of faces, such that a ray of light entering it from
one face undergoes repeated total internal reflections from
other faces. As a result, the faces through which the light
emerges, shine very brilliantly.
4. Optical Fibres :
In 1870, John Tyndall, a British physicist demonstrated that
light could be made to follow curved path along a thin stream
of water coming out of a water tank. This effect was made use
of an illuminated fountains. The light follows curved path it
suffers a series of total internal reflections.
Optical fibres commits of thousands of strands of a very fine
quality glass or quartz of refractive index about 1.7 or so. The
thickness of a strand is about 10-6 cm. The strands are coated
with a layer of some material of lower refractive index
(=1.5).
 When light is incident at a small angle at are end, it gets
refracted into strands and gets incident on the interface of the
fibres and the coating. The angle of incidence being greater
than critical angle, the ray of light undergoes total internal
reflections. Each fibre act as a pipe and such a bundle of
fibres can be used to convey images along paths of any shape.
The optical fibre does not bend light. Instead, light follows the
zin-zag path through the fibres.
5. Looming :
It is an optical illusion observed in the cold countries. In
which observers get an impression that object is placed in air.

Uses
i) Optical fibres are used inn the field of communication and
the computers.
ii) The optical fibres are used for making medical
investigation.
iii) The optical fibre sensors have been used to measure
temperature and pressure.
iv) The optical are used for transmitting the optical signals
and the two dimensional pictures.
v) The optical fibre in the form of photometric sensors are
used for measuring the blood flow in the heart.
vi) The optical fibre in the form of refract meters are used to
determine the refractive indices of liquids.
vii) Optical fibre are used in telephone and other transmitting
cables.
viii) Optical fibre are used in transmission and reception of
electrical signals by converting them first into light signal.

In physics, refraction is the change in direction of a wave passing from one medium to another or from a
gradual change in the medium.[1] Refraction of light is the most commonly observed phenomenon, but other
waves such as sound waves and water waves also experience refraction. How much a wave is refracted is
determined by the change in wave speed and the initial direction of wave propagation relative to the direction of
change in speed.
For light, refraction follows Snell's law, which states that, for a given pair of media, the ratio of the sines of
the angle of incidence θ1 and angle of refraction θ2 is equal to the ratio of phase velocities (v1 / v2) in the two
media, or equivalently, to the indices of refraction (n2 / n1) of the two media.[2]
Explanation for slowing of light in a medium

As described above, the speed of light is slower in a medium other than vacuum. This slowing applies to any
medium such as air, water, or glass, and is responsible for phenomena such as refraction. When light leaves
the medium and returns to a vacuum, and ignoring any effects of gravity, its speed returns to the usual speed of
light in a vacuum, c.
Common explanations for this slowing, based upon the idea of light scattering from, or being absorbed and re-
emitted by atoms, are both incorrect. Explanations like these would cause a "blurring" effect in the resulting
light, as it would no longer be travelling in just one direction. But this effect is not seen in nature.
A more correct explanation rests on light's nature as an electromagnetic wave.[5] Because light is an oscillating
electrical/magnetic wave, light traveling in a medium causes the electrically charged electrons of the material to
also oscillate. (The material's protons also oscillate but as they are around 2000 times more massive, their
movement and therefore their effect, is far smaller). A moving electrical charge emits electromagnetic waves of
its own. The electromagnetic waves emitted by the oscillating electrons, interact with the electromagnetic waves
that make up the original light, similar to water waves on a pond, a process known as constructive interference.
When two waves interfere in this way, the resulting "combined" wave may have wave packets that pass an
observer at a slower rate. The light has effectively been slowed down. When the light leaves the material, this
interaction with electrons no longer happens, and therefore the wave packet rate (and therefore its speed)
return to normal.
Explanation for bending of light as it enters and exits a medium

Consider a wave going from one material to another where its speed is slower as in the figure. If it reaches the
interface between the materials at an angle one side of the wave will reach the second material first, and
therefore slow down earlier. With one side of the wave going slower the whole wave will pivot towards that side.
This is why a wave will bend away from the surface or toward the normal when going into a slower material. In
the opposite case of a wave reaching a material where the speed is higher, one side of the wave will speed up
and the wave will pivot away from that side.
Another way of understanding the same thing is to consider the change in wavelength at the interface. When
the wave goes from one material to another where the wave has a different speed v, the frequency f of the
wave will stay the same, but the distance between wavefronts or wavelength λ=v/f will change. If the speed is
decreased, such as in the figure to the right, the wavelength will also decrease. With an angle between the
wave fronts and the interface and change in distance between the wave fronts the angle must change over the
interface to keep the wave fronts intact. From these considerations the relationship between the angle of
incidence θ1, angle of transmission θ2 and the wave speeds v1 and v2 in the two materials can be derived. This
is the law of refraction or Snell's law and can be written as[6]
.
The phenomenon of refraction can in a more fundamental way be derived from the 2 or 3-dimensional wave
equation. The boundary condition at the interface will then require the tangential component of the wave
vector to be identical on the two sides of the interface. [7] Since the magnitude of the wave vector depend on the
wave speed this requires a change in direction of the wave vector.
The relevant wave speed in the discussion above is the phase velocity of the wave. This is typically close to
the group velocity which can be seen as the truer speed of a wave, but when they differ it is important to use the
phase velocity in all calculations relating to refraction.
A wave traveling perpendicular to a boundary, i.e. having its wavefronts parallel to the boundary, will not change
direction even if the speed of the wave changes.

TOTAL INTERNAL
REFLECTION IN
DIAMOND
From glass to air the critical angle is about 42o but it
varies from one medium to another. The material
that gives the smallest critical angle is diamond. That
is why they sparkle so much! Rays of light can easily
be made to 'bounce around inside them' by careful
cutting of the stone and the refraction at the surfaces
splits the light into a spectrum of colours!
Relatively speaking, the critical angle 24.4o for the
diamond-air boundary is extremely small. This
property of the diamond-air boundary plays an
important role in the brilliance of a diamond
gemstone. Having a small critical angle, light has the
tendency to become "trapped" inside of a diamond
once it enters. Most rays approach the diamond at
angles of incidence greater than the critical angle (as
it is so small) so a light ray will typically undergo TIR
several times before finally refracting out of the
diamond. This gives diamond a tendency to sparkle.
The effect can be enhanced by the cutting of a
diamond gemstone with a 'strategically' planned
shape. The diagram to the left depicts the total
internal reflection within a diamond gemstone with a
'strategic' and a 'non-strategic' cut.