When light enters a glass prism from air at the first refracting surface, the light ray ____________
Light Refraction at Prism's First Surface
When light travels from air into a glass prism, it moves from one medium to another, causing refraction.
Air is an optically less dense medium compared to glass. Light travels slower when it enters an optically denser medium.
According to the principle of refraction, when a light ray passes from a less dense medium (air) to a denser medium (glass), it bends towards the normal. The normal is a line perpendicular to the surface at the point where the light ray strikes.
- Option 1 is incorrect: Total internal reflection occurs when light moves from a denser to a less dense medium under specific conditions, not the other way around.
- Option 3 is incorrect: Bending away from the normal occurs when light enters a less dense medium.
- Option 4 is incorrect: Light passes straight through without bending only if it is incident normally (at 0 degrees to the normal).
Therefore, the light ray bends towards the normal as it enters the denser medium of the glass prism.
Important Questions from Physics
What is the colour of the light emitted by the Sun?
Lightning occur in the sky when two clouds:
With reference to street-lighting, how do sodium lamps differ from LED lamps?
1. Sodium lamps produce light in 360 degrees but it is not so in the case of LED lamps.
2. As street lights, sodium lamps have a longer life span than LED lamps.
3. The spectrum of visible light from sodium lamps is almost monochromatic while LED lamps offer significant colour advantages in street lighting.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Which one of the following is a reason why astronomical distances are measured in light-years?
In a pressure cooker, the temperature at which the food is cooked depends mainly upon which of the following?
1. Area of the hole in the lid
2. Temperature of the flame
3. Weight of the lid
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
