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Apr 10, 2006 · When sunlight hits a raindrop, the red light waves are bent at an angle of 42 degrees from their original direction from the sun. Shorter violet light waves are only bent at an angle of 40 degrees.
- Predicting The Direction of Bending
- The Tractor Analogy
- Least Time Principle
- Some Useful Mnemonics
Recall the Marching Soldiers analogydiscussed earlier in this lesson. The analogy served as a model for understanding the boundary behavior of light waves. As discussed, the analogy is often illustrated in a Physics classroom by a student demonstration. In the demonstration, a line of students (representing a light wave) marches towards a masking t...
Now lets consider another analogy to assist in our understanding of these two important principles. Suppose that a tractor is moving across an asphalt surface towards a rectangular plot of grass (as shown in the diagram at the right). Upon entering the grass, the tractors' wheels will sink into the surface and slow down. Upon exiting the plot of gr...
Another means of approaching the subject of the direction that light bends when crossing a boundary between two media is through the Least Time Principle. This Least Time Principle is sometimes stated as follows: A useful analogy to understanding the principle involves a lifeguard who has become aware of a drowning swimmer in the water. In order to...
Using the above principles and logic to explain and predict the direction that light refracts when crossing a boundary will be a major objective of this unit. Rather than merely restating the principle, you will be asked to apply it to a variety of situations (such as those in the Check Your Understanding section below). Part of accomplishing this ...
Resource. Refraction is the bending of light (it also happens with sound, water and other waves) as it passes from one transparent substance into another. This bending by refraction makes it possible for us to have lenses, magnifying glasses, prisms and rainbows. Even our eyes depend upon this bending of light.
Find the index of refraction for medium 2 in Figure 25.3.3a, assuming medium 1 is air and given the incident angle is 30.0 ∘ and the angle of refraction is 22.0 ∘. Strategy. The index of refraction for air is taken to be 1 in most cases (and up to four significant figures, it is 1.000). Thus n1 = 1.00 here.
Jun 7, 2023 · Red light waves bend the least, so their path stays closer to a straight line. That leaves red at the top of the rainbow. Violet light waves bend the most when passing through the prism, so that hue dips down to the bottom. The other colors of the rainbow end up in between red and violet, based on how much their waves bend.
The light enters the water (at the curved side of the dish) along the normal line; no bending occurs upon entry. The light continues through the water along a straight line until it reaches the boundary with air (at the flat side of the dish). The angle of incidence in the water is approximately 39°. At this angle, the light refracts out of ...
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Why do light waves bend?
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How do light waves behave across the electromagnetic spectrum?
Aug 10, 2016 · Light waves across the electromagnetic spectrum behave in similar ways. When a light wave encounters an object, they are either transmitted, reflected, absorbed, refracted, polarized, diffracted, or scattered depending on the composition of the object and the wavelength of the light. Specialized instruments onboard NASA spacecraft and airplanes collect data on how electromagnetic waves behave