What is the relationship between the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection in total internal reflection?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
What is the relationship between the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection in total internal reflection?
They are equal
They are complementary
They are supplementary
There is no relationship
In total internal reflection, the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: What is the relationship between the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection in total internal reflection?
Solution: In total internal reflection, the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.
Steps: 5
Step 1: Understand what total internal reflection is. It happens when light hits a boundary between two different materials and reflects back completely instead of passing through.
Step 2: Identify the angle of incidence. This is the angle between the incoming light ray and the normal line (an imaginary line perpendicular to the surface).
Step 3: Identify the angle of reflection. This is the angle between the reflected light ray and the normal line.
Step 4: Learn the key rule: In total internal reflection, the angle of incidence is always equal to the angle of reflection.
Step 5: Remember that this rule applies only in the case of total internal reflection, which occurs when light travels from a denser medium to a less dense medium.