PHYSICS - Refraction

D.Santhosh
Xll-B
INDEX :
1. Introduction
2. Causes of Refraction
3. Definition of Total Internal Reflection

4. Total internal reflection and its

applications.

5. Refraction at a spherical surface

6. Refraction through a spherical surface

7. How a Lens Refracts Light

8. What Is Power of a Lens?

9. Refraction through a prism

What Is Refraction?

Refraction is the bending of a wave when it

passes from one medium to another. The
bending is caused due to the differences in
density between the two substances.

Defining Refraction
“Refraction is the change in the direction of a
wave passing from one medium to another.”

Refraction of light is one of the most commonly

observed phenomena, but other waves like
sound waves and water waves also experience
refraction. Refraction makes it possible for us to
have optical instruments such as magnifying
glasses, lenses and prisms. It is also because of
the refraction of light that we are able to focus
light on our retina.
Why do stars twinkle?

Did you know that the twinkling effect of stars

is due to atmospheric refraction? The starlight
undergoes several refractions while reaching
the Earth. This atmospheric refraction occurs
in a medium of gradually changing refractive
index.
Causes of Refraction

Change of Speed Results in Change in

Direction

A light ray refracts whenever it travels at an angle into a

medium of different refractive indices. This change in
speed results in a change in direction. As an example,
consider air travelling into water. The speed of light
decreases as it continues to travel at a different angle.

The refraction of light in glass is shown in the figure

above. When light travels from air into glass, the light
slows down and changes direction slightly. When light
travels from a less dense substance to a denser
substance, the refracted light bends more towards the
normal line. If the light wave approaches the boundary in
a perpendicular direction, the light ray doesn’t refract
despite the change in speed.

Definition Of Total Internal Reflection

In short terms, total internal reflection is defined as the

light ray that travels from an optically denser medium to an
optically rarer medium. When the travel medium changes,
the ray gets bent away from the normal. This, in turn,
makes the angle of refraction more than the angle of
incidence. Let’s take an example to discuss total internal
reflection in detail. Consider water and air as the two
mediums in which the refraction of light takes place.

1. When the light travels from water (high refractive

index) to air (low refractive index), the light ray gets
refracted at the junction point. During the refraction,
the light ray bends away from the normal, increasing
the angle of refraction.

2. At a certain angle of incidence, the incident light ray

passes straight along the water surface. This specific
angle of incidence is termed as the critical angle,
denoted by ic. In such a case, the angle of refraction
is always 90°.

3.The third case is when the critical angle is less than

the angle of incidence. In such a case, the light ray
that is made to strike the surface reflects back into
 the same medium. And, this phenomenon is known
as total internal reflection.

Formula of Total Internal Reflection

Total internal reflection is the ratio of the refractive index of

medium 1 to the refractive index of medium 2. In other
terms, the ratio of the sine of the angle of incidence to the
sine of the angle of refraction is known as total internal
reflection. Total internal reflection =n1 / n2 = sin(i) / sin(r).
Where r is the angle of refraction; i is the angle of
incidence; n1is the refractive index of the first medium; and
n2 is the refractive index of the second medium. Here is
the formula of critical angle in the sine form:- sin Ө = n2 /
n1 Critical angle in the formula is defined as:- the sine of
critical angle is equal to the ratio of the refractive index of
the second medium to the refractive index of the first
medium. θcritical or θ=

-----------------
sin-1(n2/n1)
-----------------

Important Conditions For Total

Internal Reflection

For total internal reflection to take place, the light must

satisfy the below-mentioned two conditions.
 1. The beam of incident light should travel from a
more dense medium to a less dense medium.

2. The critical angle should always be less than the

angle of incidence (made by the incident ray).

If the incident beam of light satisfies the two conditions, it

will lead to total internal reflection.

Total internal reflection and its

applications.
1. Diamond :

Diamond is popular because of its amazing shine and its

glamorous look. The shine of the diamond is due to the
phenomenon of total internal reflection. The reason is due
to the lower diamond and air interface. Because of the
lower diamond and air interface, the beam of lights
entering into the diamond remains inside the diamond and
suffers multiple internal reflections. The cut of the diamond
is made in such a way that the light that once entered the
diamond remains in it and comes out from the top after
suffering multiple reflections.

2.Mirage :
Mirage is an optical illusion concept that is based on total
internal reflection. You can observe this optical
phenomenon during the hot summer days when total
internal reflection occurs. According to this phenomenon,
the air that is present near the ground gets hotter as
compared to the other place above it. Hot air has a small
refractive index and is less dense. Alternatively, the cold
air has a large refractive index and is denser. Thus, with
the increase in height, the optical density also increases
and vice versa. When a beam of light passes through a
longer object, the light bends away from the normal and
undergoes total internal reflection. When you walk or drive
on hot sunny days, you will find the light coming to your
eyes is coming from below ground. This results in the
inverted image of tall objects in the water, and the
phenomenon is known as Mirage.

3. Optical fibre :

Another important application of total internal reflection is

the concept of optical fibre. During such a phenomenon,
when a beam of light strikes the cladding, the concept of
total internal reflection takes place. In this case, the
formed angle is always greater than the critical angle.
Let’s explain the concept of optical fibre in detail! Optical
fibres consist of core and cladding and are fabricated with
high-quality composite glass fibre. The refractive index of
the material of cladding is lower than the refractive index
of the material of the core. When the beam of light moves
from one end of optical fiber to another fiber at a certain
angle, it undergoes recurrent total internal reflections. This
reflection takes place in the whole fibre and then the light
comes out from the other end. This concept is used to
transmit and receive electrical signals. Then, with the help
of a transducer, these signals are then converted to light.
In addition to that, these optical fibres are used in the light
pipe. This helps doctors and other healthcare
professionals use this phenomenon to examine internal
organs of the human body.

Conclusion of total internal reflection

Total internal reflection or internal reflection is the bending
of light when it passes from one medium to another. This
effect is also known as bending of the light. During this
phenomenon, the light either drives towards or away from
the normal, giving rise to the total internal reflection.
Refraction at a spherical surface

Every day we come across plenty of spherical lenses

unknowingly. But, we hardly realize how amazingly it
works. For example, the spectacles you are wearing, the
vehicle mirror you have, and everything comes with a
spherical surface. Little do we know about the refraction at
a spherical surface.

A change in the light direction or just a bending in the light

wave moving from transparent mediums is caused due to
wave speed. This phenomenon is known as refraction.
You will come across this phenomenon in nature. Lenses
tend to converge or diverge light rays passing through it
only due to refraction. Let us check out more about
refraction.

Refraction through a spherical

surface
Spherical surfaces are an integral part of the sphere. If
you want to know about a common spherical surface, you
will notice the spherical mirrors, a great example. Convex
and concave are two common spherical surfaces. Convex
is a surface that has curved outwards. A convex lens
supports refraction from rarer to denser medium at a
convex spherical refracting surface.
However, every concave lens comes curved inwards when
it comes to the concave surface.

What are the derivations for the

refraction of spherical surfaces for
the pointed objects?

It is important to understand that the refraction at a

spherical surface mainly occurs in two ways. A ray of light
travels from the rare medium to dense medium, where the
light bends towards the normal. Alternatively, the ray of
light travels from the denser to the rarer medium, where
the ray of light tends to bend away from the normal. Here
are some of the considerations that you need to keep in
mind.
  The object you are considering is point sized and is
kept on the principal axis of the spherical refracting
surface.
 The aperture of the refracting surface is small.
 Incident and the refracting rays make small angles
with the principal axis of the spherical surface.

Two cases happen while considering the refraction at the

spherical surface: refraction from denser to rarer medium
at a convex spherical surface and a concave spherical
surface. When considering refraction from dense to rare
medium, two things occur—refraction from the dense to
rare medium at the convex spherical surface and a
concave spherical surface.

How a Lens Refracts Light

How a Lens Refracts Light

First let us consider a double convex lens. Suppose that

several rays of light approach the lens; and suppose that
these rays of light are traveling parallel to the principal
axis. Upon reaching the front face of the lens, each ray of
light will refract towards the normal to the surface. At this
boundary, the light ray is passing from air into a more
dense medium (usually plastic or glass). Since the light
ray is passing from a medium in which it travels fast
(less optically dense) into a medium in which it travels
relatively slow (more optically dense), it will bend towards
the normal line. This is the FST principle of refraction .
This is shown for two incident rays on the diagram below.
Once the light ray refracts across the boundary and enters
the lens, it travels in a straight line until it reaches the back
face of the lens. At this boundary, each ray of light will
refract away from the normal to the surface. Since the light
ray is passing from a medium in which it travels slow
(more optically dense) to a medium in which it travels fast
(less optically dense), it will bend away from the normal
line; this is the SFA principle of refraction.

The above diagram shows the behavior of two incident

rays traveling through the focal point on the way to the
lens. Note that the two rays refract parallel to the principal
axis. A second generalization for the refraction of light by a
double convex lens can be added to the first
generalization.
What Is Power of a Lens?

Simply put, the power of a lens in Ray Optics is its ability

to bend light. The greater the power of a lens, the greater
its ability to refract light that passes through it. For
a convex lens , the converging ability is defined by power
and in a concave lens, the diverging ability.

Do you notice the connection between the focal length and

the bending of the light ray? As the focal length
decreases, the amount the light bends increases.
Therefore, we can conclude that the power of a lens is
inversely proportional to the focal length of the lens. A
short focal length basically contributes to high optical
power.

Refraction through a prism

Consider the refraction through the prism diagram to

understand the phenomena properly!
Let’s assume the ABC prism, which is a glass triangle
prism. Let BC be the starting point, and AB and AC be the
refracting surfaces. The line OP represents the incident
light ray. The incident ray is the light that enters the prism.
The speed of the light ray changes as it approaches the
new surface on the prism’s side, and it bends, forming a
new beam within the prism, which is known as the
refracted ray.

This refracted ray will be referred to as PQ. The refracted

light ray then passes through the prism and emerges from
the opposite side. Because it emerges from the surface,
the light ray is referred to as an emergent ray.

QR is the designation given to the emerging ray in the

diagram. Because of the shift in medium, the emergent ray
QR bends at an angle from the refracted ray PQ.
When a ray of white light passes through a prism, it
scatters into seven different colors. When white light is
refracted, it breaks into its constituents due to the varying
degrees of deviation experienced by different hues of light
waves.