GEOLOGY

EARTH SCIENCE

MINERALOGY

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
It happens when the light travels from a high density medium to a low density one with an angle of incidence greater than the critical angle.
A
angle of refraction
B
critical angle
C
total internal reflection
D
None of the above
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -The only way for the angle of refraction to be greater than the angle of incidence is for light to bend away from the normal. Since light only bends away from the normal when passing from a more dense medium into a less dense medium, then this would be a necessary condition for total internal reflection.

Detailed explanation-2: -Light is refracted (bent) only at the interface between two transparent materials of different density. Light passing from a less dense to a more dense medium bends toward the normal. Light passing from a more dense to a less dense medium bends away from the normal.

Detailed explanation-3: -If the angle of incidence is greater than the critical angle, the ray will be reflected back to the same medium without undergoing refraction. This is known as total internal reflection.

Detailed explanation-4: -The critical angle (c) is the angle of incidence for which the angle of refraction is 90°. Beyond the critical angle, 100% of the incident light is reflected back into the same medium.

Detailed explanation-5: -The previous pages illustrated light traveling from a rarer medium (air) to a denser medium (water). You saw that light bends toward the normal in this situation, and that the angle in the denser medium will be smaller than the angle in the rarer medium.

There is 1 question to complete.