Particles and Waves - Refraction of Light Flashcards
(9 cards)
1
Q
What is absolute refractive index?
A
The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum to the speed of light in the medium
2
Q
What happens when light is passed from one medium to another?
A
Light changes speed (refraction)
3
Q
A
4
Q
What happens in the medium where light is faster?
A
The angle and wavelength are bigger
5
Q
What happens to the refractive index as frequency of incident radiation increases?
A
The refractive index increases
6
Q
What is the angle of incidence called when the angle of refraction is 90?
A
The critical angle
7
Q
What happens when the angle of incidence is more than the critical angle?
A
Total internal reflection, light is reflected rather than refracted, so the light cant pass through surface
8
Q
Steps of experiment to determine refractive index of a medium
A
- Draw round semi-circular block and draw dashed normal line at 90 to midpoint of edge
- Set up ray box with an incident angle of 10 to the normal line and mark refracted ray with pencil
- Remove raybox and block and measure angle of incidence and refraction from the normal using protractor
- Repeat for angles of incidence from 15-40
9
Q
A
