PASSING THROUGH

CHAPTER 6 – LESSON 6.1

SCIENCE 10
REFRACTION is the change in the direction of light
when it passes from one medium to another of
different optical density.
It occurs as a result of the
change in the speed of
light upon crossing the
boundary of two different
media.
MATERIALS:
- 1 clear drinking glass, a glass of clear tap water,
bond paper, and colored pen

PROCEDURE:
1. Draw an arrow pointing left or right on
the paper and rest it against
something so it is standing up.
2. Place a transparent (clear) glass in
front of the picture so you can
clearly see the arrow through the
glass.
3. Fill the glass in (2) with water.
4. Watch your arrow change direction!
- The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum to
that in the material, that is
1. The speed of light in an unknown medium
is measured to be 2.76 x 108 m/s. What is
the index of refraction of the medium?

2. Optical fibers are generally composed of

silica, with an index of refraction around
1.44. How fast does light travel in a silica
fiber?
ANSWERS:

1. 1.09
2. 2.08 X 108 m/s
3.
1. Incident ray, reflected ray, refracted ray
and the normal of the system lie In the
same plane.
2. The ratio of the sine of the angle of
incidence to the sine of the angle of
refraction is a constant. This is also known as
Snell’s law of refraction. That is,

or
Sample Problem 1:

Light travels from air into an optical fiber with an index

of refraction of 1.44.
(a)In which direction does the light bend?
(b)If the angle of incidence on the end of the fiber is
22o, what is the angle of refraction inside the fiber?
(c)Sketch the path of light as it changes media.
ANSWER:
(a)Since the light is traveling from
a rarer region (lower n) to a
Optical
denser region (higher n), it will bend fiber
toward the normal.
Continuation…
GIVEN FORMULA SOLUTION FINAL ANSWER
(b) (1.00) sin 22 = (1.44) sin Ɵ2
n1 = 1.00 sin Ɵ2 =
n2 = 1.44 (1.00) (sin 22 )/1.44 Ɵ = 15o
Ɵ = sin -1 (sin 22o /1.44)
θ1 = 22º Ɵ = 15o
(ROUND TO THE NEAREST UNIT)
UNKNOWN: θ2

(c) The path of

the light is shown
in the figure.
Sample Problem 2:

Light traveling through an optical fiber (n=1.44) reaches the

end of the fiber and exits into air.
(a) If the angle of incidence on the end of the fiber is 30o,
what is the angle of refraction outside the fiber?
(b) How would your answer be different if the angle of
incidence were 50o?
(a) θ2 = 46o
(a) Replacing the angle of incidence with 50o gives
sin Ɵ2 = 1.103 which is not possible. This implies that light
light cannot exit the fiber under these conditions. This is
an example of total internal reflection
TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION

- complete reflection of a ray of light within a medium

such as water or glass from the surrounding surfaces
back into the medium. The phenomenon occurs if the
angle of incidence is greater than a certain limiting
angle, called the critical angle.

PLEASE WATCH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFYWPamx9F8&ab_channel=AndyMasley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAaHPRsveJk&ab_channel=QuantumBoffin