Law of Reflection and Refraction
Law of Reflection and Refraction
Solid (at )
Ice () 1.31
Glass (crown) 1.52
Glass (flint) 1.65
Sodium chloride 1.53
Zircon 1.92
Diamond 2.42
Snell’s Law
Example 1:
Light travels from crown glass into water. The angle
of incidence in the crown glass is . What is the angle of
refraction in water? The index of refraction of the
crown glass is 1.52 and the water is 1.33.
Solution:
Snell’s Law
Solution:
The angle of
refraction in water is .
Snell’s Law
Example 2:
Light travels in water with a speed of . Calculate the
refractive index of water.
Solution:
Considering the equation for absolute index of refraction, we
have:
Then, we have:
It will take approximately for light to pass through the glass block.
Snell’s Law
Example 4:
Suppose a layer of oil (refractive index of 1.45) floats
on water (refractive index of 1.33). If a ray of light
shines onto the oil with an incidence angle of , what is
the angle formed between the ray and the surface of
the water?
Snell’s Law
Solution:
At the interface between the air and the oil, we
have: