Notes Light - Refraction

LIGHT - REFRACTION

Refraction

→ Refraction is bending of light when it enters obliquely from one transparent medium to another.

→ Speed of light is maximum in vaccum. It is 3 × 108 m/s.

→ Cause of refraction: Change in speed of light.

Effects of refraction (Examples)

1.Explain with the help of a ray diagram, why a pencil partly immersed in water appears to be bent at the water
surface.

A stick or a pencil half immersed in water at an angle appears bent due to refraction of light at the air-water
surface. Figure shows a straight stick AO whose lower portion BO is immersed in water. It appears to be bent at
point B in the direction BI. A ray of light OC coming from the lower end O passes from water into air at C and
gets refracted away from the normal in the direction CX.Another ray OD gets refracted in the direction DY. The
two refracted ray CX and DY, when produced backward, appear to meet at point I, nearer to the water surface
than O. Similarly each part of the immersed portion of the stick raised. As a result immersed portion of the stick
appears to be bent when viewed at an angle from outside.

2.A coin placed at the bottom of a tank appears to be raised when the water is poured in to it.Why?

It happens due to the, phenomenon of refraction of light. When the rays of light from the coin, in the denser
medium, fall on the interface separating the two media, the rays of light move away from the normal after
refraction. The point from which the refracted rays appear to come gives the apparent position of the coin. As
the rays appear to come from a point above the coin, therefore, the coin seems io be raised.

1
 Notes Light - Refraction

Refraction through a rectangular glass slab

When a ray of light (PQ) incident on the face AB of glass slab, then it bends towards the normal since refraction
takes place from rarer to denser medium. The refracted ray (QR) travel along straight line and incident on face
DC of slab and bends away from the normal since refraction takes place from denser to rarer medium. The ray
(RS) out through face DC is called emergent ray.
From the following diagram

1. The incident ray is parallel to the emergent ray i.e. i = e.

2. The emergent ray is laterally deviated from its original path (incident ray) by a distance d,called lateral
displacement or lateral shift.

→ The extent of bending of ray of light at the opposite parallel faces of rectangular
glass slab is equal and opposite, so the ray emerges parallel to incident ray.

2
 Notes Light - Refraction

•
•
• The perpendicular distance between the emergent ray coming out of the rectangular glass slab
and the actual path of the incident ray is called lateral displacement.
•
•
• Lateral displacement is
directly proportional to
→ Refractive index of glass slab
→ Thickness of the glass slab
→ Angle of incidence
→Lateral shift is inversely proportional to the wavelength of light.

Laws of Refraction

(i)The incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal to the interface of two
transparent media at the point of incidence, all lie in the same plane.

(ii)
The ratio of sine of angle of incidence to the sine of angle of refraction is a constant,
for a light of given colour and for a given pair of media.

sin i/sin r = constant ,This is called Snell’s law , the constant is called refractive index of the medium(n).

→Absolute refractive index: When the light is going from vacuum/air to another medium, then the
value of refractive index is called the absolute refractive index.

→Relative refractive index: When the light goes from one medium (other than
vacuum or air) to another medium(other than vacuum or air) then that refractive index
is called relative refractive index.

Q. Define i) absolute refractive index ii) relative refractive index in terms of angles.

i.When a ray of light travelling from air/vacuum to a second optical medium the constant sini/sinr is known as
absolute refractive index of the second medium.

Eg: Ray travelling from Air → Glass

nga or ng = sin i/sin r

ii. When the light goes from one optical medium (other than vacuum or air) to another optical medium(other
than vacuum or air) ,then the value of sin i/sinr is known as relative refractive index of medium2
w.r.t.medium1
Eg: Ray travelling from Water → Glass
ngw = sin i/sin r

Q. State the relationship between the refractive index of a medium and the speed of light in that medium.

The refractive index of a medium is the ratio of the speed of light in medium 1 to the speed of light in medium
2.Hence the refractive index of a medium is inversely proportional to the speed of light in that medium.

Eg: air nmedium = speed of light in air/ speed of light in medium

3
 Notes Light - Refraction

Since speed of light in air is a constant

nmedium  1/ speed of light in medium

Absolute refractive index in terms of speed of light

→ Refractive index of a medium with respect to vaccum or air, n = (c/v) where c = 3 × 108 m/s

Relative refractive index in terms of speed of light

→n21 means refractive index of medium 2 with respect to medium1
→n21= speed of light in medium 1/speed of light in medium2 = v1 / v2

→ n12 means refractive index of medium 1 with respect to medium 2

→ n12 = speed of light in medium 2/speed of light in medium1 = v2 / v1

→ n12 x n21 = v2 / v1 x v1 / v2 = 1

→ n12 = 1/n21.

• Optically denser medium: Out of two given media, the medium with higher value
of refractive index.(speed of light decreases in denser medium)

• Optically rarer medium: Out of two given media, the medium with lower value to refractive index. (speed of
light increases in rarer medium)

→ When light enters obliquely from a rarer to a denser medium, it bends towards the normal.

→ When light enters obliquely from denser to a rarer medium, it bends away from the normal.
4
 Notes Light - Refraction

Q. Write conditions for NO refraction.

→ When the incident ray is perpendicular(normal) to the surface of the two media ..
→ When the refractive index of both the media are same

LENS :The transparent refracting medium bounded by two surfaces in which at least one surface is curved is
called lens.

When each refracting surface of a lens is a part of a sphere then it is called spherical lens.
Spherical lenses are of two type

 Convex lens – refracting surfaces are projected outward

 Concave lens – refracting surfaces are curved inward

Centers of Curvature: The centres of two spheres, of which lens is part is called the centres of curvature.

Radii of Curvature: The radii of spheres, of which lens is part is called radii of curvature.

Principal Axis: The line joining the centres of curvature of two surfaces of lens is called principal axis.

Optical Center (O): It is the centre of a spherical lens.

Principal Focus: The point on the principal axis at which all incident rays parallel to the principal axis converge or
appear to diverge after refraction through the lens

5
 Notes Light - Refraction

Convex Lens Concave Lens

Thin at corners Thick at corners

Thick at center Thin at centre

Converging Diverging

Rules for image formation by convex lens

(i)A ray of light parallel to principal axis of a convex lens always pass through the focus on
the other side of the lens.

(ii)
A ray of light passing through the principal focus will emerge parallel to principal
axis after refraction.

6
 Notes Light - Refraction

(iii) A ray of light passing through the optical center will emerge without any deviation. WHY?

Ray Diagrams of Image formed by Convex Lens

(i)When object is at infinity

Image Position − At ‘F 2 ’
Nature of image – Real, inverted
Size – Point sized or highly diminished

When object is beyond ‘2F1’

(ii)
Image Position – Between ‘F2’ and
‘2F2’
Nature of image– Real, inverted
Size – Diminished

When object is at ‘2F1 ’

(iii)
Image Position – At ‘2F2 ’
Nature of image –
Real,inverted
Size – Same size

7
 Notes Light - Refraction

(iv)When object is between ‘F1’ and ‘2F1’

Image Position – Beyond ‘2F2’
Nature of image – Real,
inverted
Size – Enlarged

(v)When object is at ‘F1’

Image Position – At Infinity
Nature- Real,inverted
Size – Highly enlarged

8
 Notes Light - Refraction

(vi)When object is between ‘F 1’ and optical

centre
Image Position – On the same side of the object
Nature of image – Virtual and erect
Size – Enlarged

Rules for Image Formation by Concave Lens

(i)A ray of light parallel to the principal axis appear to diverge from the principal focus
located on the same side of the lens.

(ii)
A ray of light appearing to meet at the principal focus of a concave lens will emerge
parallel to principal axis.

(iii) A ray of light passing through the optical centre of a lens will emerge without any deviation.
9
 Notes Light - Refraction

Ray Diagrams of Images Formed by a Concave Lens

(i)When object is placed at infinity

Image Position − At ‘F1
Nature of image – Virtual, erect
Size – Point sized or highly diminished

When object is placed between infinity and optical centre

(ii)
Image Position – Between ‘F’
and ‘O’
Nature of image – Virtual, erect
Size – Diminished

10
 Notes Light - Refraction

Sign convention for spherical lenses

(Sign conventions are similar to the one used for spherical mirrors, except that
measurements are taken from optical center of the lens.)
Convex lens
• →u – negative
• →v- positive except case 6
• →f - Positive
• →h- positive
• →h’ – negative except case 6
•
Concave lens
→u - Negative
→v- negative
→f- negative
→ h- positive
→h’- positive

Lens Formula
1/v - 1/u = 1/f

Magnification
m = h’/h
m= v/u

Power of a lens
Power (P) = 1/f , if f is in metre
Power (P) = 100/f ,If f is in centimetre

→ SI unit of Power - dioptre (D)

→ 1 D = 1 m-1

→ 1 dioptre is the power of lens whose focal length is one meter.

→ Power of convex lens - Positive

→ Power of concave lens - Negative

→ Power of combination of lenses (P) = P1 + P2 + P3 .........

*************************

11
Notes Light - Refraction

12