Refraction of Light

Study Notes

Refraction is the bending of light as it passes from one medium to another
Occurs because light travels at different speeds in different media
Snell's Law: n1 sin(θ1) = n2 sin(θ2)
- n1 and n2 are the refractive indices of the two media
- θ1 and θ2 are the angles of incidence and refraction
Total internal reflection occurs when light passes from a medium with a higher refractive index to a medium with a lower refractive index and the angle of incidence is greater than the critical angle

Types of mirrors:
- Plane mirrors: flat mirrors that reflect light
- Spherical mirrors: curved mirrors that can be concave or convex
Mirror equation: 1/do + 1/di = 1/f
- do is the distance from the object to the mirror
- di is the distance from the image to the mirror
- f is the focal length of the mirror
Mirror formula: m = -di/do = -f/(do-f)
- m is the magnification of the mirror

Types of lenses:
- Convex lenses: thicker in the middle than at the edges, converge light
- Concave lenses: thinner in the middle than at the edges, diverge light
Lensmaker's equation: 1/do + 1/di = 1/f
- do is the distance from the object to the lens
- di is the distance from the image to the lens
- f is the focal length of the lens
Lens formula: m = -di/do = -f/(do-f)
- m is the magnification of the lens

Occurs when light passes from a medium with a higher refractive index to a medium with a lower refractive index and the angle of incidence is greater than the critical angle
Critical angle: the angle of incidence above which total internal reflection occurs
Calculated using Snell's Law: sin(θc) = n2/n1
- θc is the critical angle
- n1 and n2 are the refractive indices of the two media
Applications: optical fibers, prisms, and lenses

Refraction occurs due to the change in light speed as it passes from one medium to another
Snell's Law governs refraction, given by n1 sin(θ1) = n2 sin(θ2)
The law relates refractive indices n1 and n2 to angles of incidence θ1 and refraction θ2

Plane mirrors are flat and reflect light, while spherical mirrors are curved and can be concave or convex
Mirror equation: 1/do + 1/di = 1/f, relating object distance do, image distance di, and focal length f
Mirror formula: m = -di/do = -f/(do-f), giving the magnification m of the mirror

Convex lenses are thicker in the middle and converge light, while concave lenses are thinner in the middle and diverge light
Lensmaker's equation: 1/do + 1/di = 1/f, relating object distance do, image distance di, and focal length f
Lens formula: m = -di/do = -f/(do-f), giving the magnification m of the lens

Total internal reflection occurs when light passes from a higher refractive index to a lower refractive index and the angle of incidence exceeds the critical angle
Critical angle calculation: sin(θc) = n2/n1, where θc is the critical angle and n1 and n2 are the refractive indices
Applications of total internal reflection include optical fibers, prisms, and lenses