Investigating total internal reflection

Method
1. Place your Perspex block in the middle of a piece of A4 paper and draw round
it.
2. Draw the normal line at right angles to the bottom of the block
3. Shine the light from a ray box onto the block so that the angle of incidence is
10o
4. Draw the emerging ray
5. Measure the angle of refraction and record it in the table
6. Repeat this for 15o, 20o,25o, 30o, 35o, 40o and 45o

N
angle of
refraction r
A4 SHEET OF
PAPER
emerging ray
O

angle of perspex block

incidence i
ray box A normal
M

Angle of incidence (o) Angle of refraction (o)

10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45

When the light enters the block at an angle and is reflected back out it is called
TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION. The angle this occurs at is called the CRITICAL
ANGLE.

1) Use your equipment to find out the critical angle for total internal
reflection in a semi-circular glass block.

2) Draw a line graph of your results.

3) Can you think of any applications of total internal reflection?