If the angle of incidence in glass (n=1.5) is 60°, will total internal reflectio
Practice Questions
Q1
If the angle of incidence in glass (n=1.5) is 60°, will total internal reflection occur when light travels to air?
Yes
No
Depends on the angle
Not enough information
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
If the angle of incidence in glass (n=1.5) is 60°, will total internal reflection occur when light travels to air?
Step 1: Understand the concept of total internal reflection. It occurs when light travels from a denser medium (like glass) to a less dense medium (like air) and the angle of incidence is greater than a certain critical angle.
Step 2: Identify the refractive indices of the two media. For glass, the refractive index (n) is 1.5, and for air, it is approximately 1.00.
Step 3: Calculate the critical angle using the formula: critical angle = sin⁻¹(n2/n1), where n1 is the refractive index of glass (1.5) and n2 is the refractive index of air (1.00).
Step 4: Plug in the values: critical angle = sin⁻¹(1.00/1.5).
Step 5: Calculate the critical angle, which is approximately 41.8°.
Step 6: Compare the angle of incidence (60°) with the critical angle (41.8°). Since 60° is greater than 41.8°, total internal reflection will occur.
Total Internal Reflection – Total internal reflection occurs when the angle of incidence exceeds the critical angle, preventing light from passing into a less dense medium.
Critical Angle – The critical angle is the minimum angle of incidence at which total internal reflection occurs, calculated using the refractive indices of the two media.
Snell's Law – Snell's Law relates the angles of incidence and refraction to the refractive indices of the two media involved.
