A ray of light passes from air into water at an angle of incidence of 30 degrees. What is the angle of refraction?

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22 degrees
30 degrees
45 degrees
18 degrees

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Q: A ray of light passes from air into water at an angle of incidence of 30 degrees. What is the angle of refraction?

Solution: Using Snell's law, n1 * sin(θ1) = n2 * sin(θ2). Here, n1 = 1 (air), n2 = 1.33 (water), θ1 = 30 degrees. Thus, sin(θ2) = (1 * sin(30))/1.33 = 0.375. Therefore, θ2 = sin^(-1)(0.375) which is approximately 22 degrees.

Steps: 10

Step 1: Identify the angle of incidence (θ1), which is given as 30 degrees.
Step 2: Identify the refractive indices: n1 for air is 1 and n2 for water is 1.33.
Step 3: Write down Snell's law formula: n1 * sin(θ1) = n2 * sin(θ2).
Step 4: Substitute the known values into the formula: 1 * sin(30 degrees) = 1.33 * sin(θ2).
Step 5: Calculate sin(30 degrees), which is 0.5.
Step 6: Now the equation looks like: 0.5 = 1.33 * sin(θ2).
Step 7: Rearrange the equation to find sin(θ2): sin(θ2) = 0.5 / 1.33.
Step 8: Calculate 0.5 / 1.33, which equals approximately 0.375.
Step 9: Use the inverse sine function to find θ2: θ2 = sin^(-1)(0.375).
Step 10: Calculate θ2, which is approximately 22 degrees.

A ray of light passes from air into water at an angle of incidence of 30 degrees. What is the angle of refraction?

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