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Physical Science
Endterm – Learning Activity Sheet 3:
Reflection, Refraction
& the Photon Theory of Light

SCHOOLS DIVISION OF LA CARLOTA CITY

Physical Science
Activity Sheet No. 3
First Edition, 2020

Published in the Philippines

By the Department of Education
Region 6 – Western Visayas
Schools Division of La Carlota City

Republic Act 8293, section 176 states that: No copyright shall subsist in any
work of the Government of the Philippines. However, prior approval of the
government agency of office wherein the work is created shall be necessary for
exploitation of such work for profit. Such agency or office may, among other things,
impose as a condition the payment of royalties.

This Learning Activity Sheet was developed by DepEd Region 6 – Western

Visayas, Schools Division of La Carlota City.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this learning resources may be

reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical
without written permission from the Schools Division of La Carlota City.

Development Team of Senior High School Science Activity Sheet

Writer: Grace C. Isidro

Layout Artist: Ana Marielle L. Ginete

Schools Division Quality Assurance Team:

Jessery O. Cadungon
Salvador A. Hiponia
Ma. Lumina V. Rumbines
Erle P. Arbado, PhD

Division of La Carlota City Management Team

Neri Anne M. Alibuyog, EdD, CESO V
Nelly E. Garrote
Analee G. Bartolo
Ma. Concepcion G. Pagcaliwagan
Erle P. Arbado, PhD

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Introductory Message
Welcome to Physical Science!

This Learning Activity Sheet is a product of the collaborative efforts of the

Doña Hortencia Salas Benedicto National High School – Senior High School and the
Schools Division Office of La Carlota City through the Curriculum Implementation
Division (CID). This was developed to guide the learning facilitators (teachers,
parents and responsible adults) in helping the learners meet the standards set by the
K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum.

This Learning Activity Sheet is a self-directed instructional material aimed

to guide the learners in accomplishing activities at their own pace and time using the
contextualized resources in the community. This will also assist the learners in
acquiring the lifelong learning skills, knowledge and attitudes for productivity and
employment.

For the learning facilitator:

This Physical Science Learning Activity Sheet will help you facilitate the
teaching-learning activities for the specified Most Essential Learning Competency
(MELC) with minimal or no face-to-face encounter between the teacher and the
learner. This is made available to the learners with the references/links to ease
independent learning.

For the learner:

This Physical Science Learning Activity Sheet was developed to help you
continue learning even if you are not in school. This learning material provides you
with meaningful and engaging activities for independent learning. Being an active
learner, carefully read and understand the instructions then perform the activities and
answer the assessments. This will be returned to your school and teacher on the
agreed schedule.

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 Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) for Physical Science

Name of Learner:
Section: Date:

Physical Science Activity Sheet 3

REFLECTION, REFRACTION
AND THE PHOTON THEORY OF LIGHT

I. Learning Competency with Code

At the end of the lesson, the learners demonstrate:
1. describe how the propagation of light, reflection, and refraction are explained by the wave
model and the particle model of light (S11/12PS-IVf-59); and
2. explain how the photon theory of light accounts for atomic spectra (S11/12PS-IVf-60).

II. Background Information for Learners

Light is a form of energy that enables people to see things. It is an electromagnetic ray
that travels in a straight line. Light has properties of both waves and particles under certain
situations.
Sir Isaac Newton advocated the particle theory that light consists of tiny particles of
matter emitted by a source and spreads outward in a straight lines called rays. Christian
Huygens, a Dutch mathematician and scientist theorized that light consists of a series of
waves with their wave fronts at right angles to the path of the rays. Thomas Young
discovered that light exhibits interference behavior that gave strong support to the wave
theory. James Clerk Maxwell developed a brilliant idea that electromagnetic waves travel
with a speed of light. Max Plank and Albert Einstein, the particle theory of light, explain
radiation emitted by hot bodies and electrons emitted by a metal exposed to light.

LIGHT: AN ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE

The term electromagnetic wave tells about its composition- the electric and magnetic
fields are present. James Clerk Maxwell, on his doing theoretical study of electromagnetic
waves, he realized that changing electric fields gives rise to a changing magnetic fields which
turn creates a changing electric field, and so on. He developed equations showing the
relationships of electricity and magnetism. The net result of interchanging fields was to create

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a train of invisible waves of electric and magnetic fields that could propagate through space
based on the equation that he found out. These waves are called electromagnetic (EM) waves.
Electromagnetic (EM) waves should travel at the speed of 3.0 x 108 m/s, the same as the
measured speed of light. There was a relationship between electromagnetic waves and light
waves are only particular type of general category called electromagnetic waves.
Heinrich Hertz gave an experimental evidence that light and electromagnetic waves
have the same nature and that they travel at the same speed such as refraction, reflection and
interference. The difference in some properties was found to be due to their different
wavelengths. The electromagnetic waves make up what is called collectively as
electromagnetic spectrum. Each wave is different from another in its wavelength, but all
waves travel in vacuum with the speed of light. The wavelengths vary from 3 x 107 m at low
frequencies to 3 x 10-17 m at high frequencies.
Angstrom unit (Ǻ), the common units used to measure wavelengths of
electromagnetic waves, the range is from 3 x 1017 Ǻ to 3 x 10-7 Ǻ ( 1Ǻ = 10-10 m). The
wavelengths of visible light range from 3.5 x 10-7 m to 7.5 x 10-7 m (3 500 Ǻ to 7500Ǻ).

PROPERTIES OF LIGHT
Reflection of light
This is the rebounding of wave from the surface of the media or the change in
direction of a wave front at an interface between two different media so that the wave front
returns into the medium from which it originated. Common examples include the reflection
of light, sound and water waves.
Reflection of light is either specular (mirror-like) or diffuse (retaining the energy, but
losing the image) depending on the nature of the interface. A mirror provides the most
common model for specular light reflection, and typically consists of a glass sheet with a
metallic coating where the reflection actually occurs. Reflection is enhanced in metals by
suppression of wave propagation beyond their skin depths. Reflection also occurs at the
surface of transparent media, such as water or glass.

Laws of Reflection
1. The incident ray, the reflected ray, and the normal line perpendicular to the reflecting
surface at the point of incidence all lie on the same plane.
2. The angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection or i= r. See Figure 3.

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 .
Figure 1. Reflection of parallel rays on a
smooth surface

The laws of reflection are observed when light is reflected from a surface regardless of the
nature of the surface. In the figure 1, the parallel rays are the incident on the smooth surface
the reflected light rays will be parallel also.

Figure 2. Diffuse reflection of parallel rays

If the parallel light rays encounter a rough surface, the rays are incident on the surface at
many different and therefore, will be reflected at many different angles, too. This is the case
of irregular reflection and is called, diffuse reflection.

In the illustration, a normal line is drawn into the

surface at the point of incidence. The incident ray
makes an angle of incidence, θ1, with normal line.
The reflected ray emerges from the point of
incidence making an angle of reflection, θ2, with
the normal line. The angle of incidence, θ1, is equal
Figure 3. Reflection on a plane
to the angle of reflection, θ2.
mirror

Refraction of Light
Light travels in a straight line as long as the medium in which it is travelling is
uniform all throughout. Light tends to slow down when it encounters a boundary between
two media of different optical densities. The speed of light in air is 3 x 108 m/s. When it
enters another medium, like water, its speed decreases. In water it decreases to a smaller
value of 2.26 x 108 m/s. When it enters water obliquely, light slows down and bends. When
light enters another medium obliquely, or at certain angle with the normal to the boundary
between the two media, it bends (either away or toward the normal depending upon which of

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the two media is denser or less dense). In the earth’s atmosphere, when light passes through
different layers of varying densities, it paths bent from a straight line at all places where
density changes. This phenomenon is direct result of the fact that light velocity slows down
upon entering a denser medium, and speeds up when it passes into a medium that is less
dense. Study Figures 4 and 5.

Figure 4. Light crosses the boundary between

two media at different angles.

Figure 5. A plastic straw is placed inside a glass with a different medium

When light is incident to the boundary between air and water at 900 with boundary or
parallel to the normal, there is no bending of light observed. Light continues to travel in a
straight line and no change in direction takes place. Since light slows down when it travels
from air to water, its wavefronts are closer together in water than in air. It shows that a
change in speed takes place and wavelengths become shorter. When light obliquely crosses
the boundary between air and water, it bends towards the normal because water is optically
denser than air. Water has a greater index of refraction or refractive index than air.

Refractive index of a substance, n = speed of light in a vacuum

speed of light in the substance

Snell’s law states that the ratio of the sine of the angle of incidence to the angle of
refraction is equal to the ratio of the index of refraction of the second medium to the index
of refraction of the medium.
sin i = n2 sin i = n2 = v1
Sin r n1 sin r n1 v2

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 Where i= is angle of incidence
R= is angle of refraction
N1= index of refraction of 1st medium
N2= index of refraction of 2nd medium
V1= speed of light in 1st medium
V2= speed of light in 2nd medium

Sample Problem:
The speed of light in air is 3 x 108 m/s. Calculate the speed of light in glass it its refractive
index is 1.5. If the angle of incidence in air is 300, find the angle of refraction in the glass.
Given: n of glass is 1.5
n of air is 1.0
v of light in air= 3.0 x 108 m/s
I of light in air = 300
Required to find: speed of light and the angle of refraction in glass
Solution:
(A) v in glass = v in air = 3 x 108 m/s = 2 x 108 m/s
n of glass 1.5
(B) Sin r = sin I = sin 300 = 0.5 = 0.333
n glass 1.5 1.5
0
r= 19.47

INTERACTION OF LIGHT WITH MATTER

A ray of light travels in a straight line until it encounters some particles that either gives
off or reflects light.
The amount of reflected light depends on 3 factors:
- The smoothness of the surface of the medium
- The kind of medium the object is made of
- The angle of which the light strikes the surface

* The ray of light is reflected when the material is smooth, when it is rough, the rays of
light are reflected in many random directions where diffuse reflections takes place.
Dust particles in the air and other irregular surfaces makes diffuse reflection. Diffuse
reflection provides light in shaded places where there is no lighting.

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 * Transparent materials (glass and water) allow light to be transmitted through them.
Opaque materials, reflect, absorb, or partly reflect and absorb light.

Reflected light varies in wavelength that results in the perception of color. When light
is absorbed it gives up its energy to the material and can be reemitted at different wavelength
or converted to heat energy which then increase in temperature of the material.The angle at
which light strikes the surface of the material and the nature of the material determine
whether light is absorbed or transmitted through the material.

How does the wave model and the particle model of light explain the propagation,
reflection, and refraction of light?
1. Reflection can be explained using the wave nature of light. Reflected light incident to
the reflecting surface at an angle between 10 and 890 is partially polarized because the
waves parallel to the reflecting surface are reflected more compared to other waves.
The application of this phenomenon is in the production of polarizing sunglasses to
remove some amount glare of the sun. Reflection by the particle theory of light is
comparing its reflection on a smooth surface to a ball thrown against a smooth wall
which rebound just like the way light is reflected.
2. Refraction of light is explained using the wave nature of light. This happens during
polarization. Crystal surfaces like calcite exhibit double refraction, meaning a beam of
light is split into two beams. One of the beams follow Snell’s law and the other does
not. This suggests that light is propagated in some substances at different speeds.
Using Newton’s rolling-ball model, when a ball is set rolling on a higher surface
toward an incline at a given angle with the normal to the edge, the ball rolls at the
inclined side across the lower surface at a smaller angle with the normal. It is like what
happens when a light ray is incident at a certain angle with the boundary between two
media. The light ray is refracted just like a rolling ball.
3. The propagation of light is explained by both the wave theory and the particle theory.
Huygens explained the straight line propagation of light using a stone dropped in a pool
of water. The stone created a disturbance in the water and created a series of concentric
waves traveling out of the point of disturbance while the stone quickly comes to rest at
the bottom of the pool. Newton explained this straight line propagation of light using
the formation of shadows when the light encounters an object and the shadows give
evidence of the straight line propagation of light.

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 Albert Einstein stated that light consists of discrete units called photons. The energy of a
photon is directly proportional to the frequency of its vibration.
E= hf , where h is the proportionality constant called Planck’s constant, which has the
value of 6.63 x 1034 Js, shows the relationship between the energy of a wave and its
frequency. Light with higher frequency has higher energy and that with lower frequency has
lower energy.

Example:
Blue light has a frequency of 6.5 x 1014 Hz while red light has a frequency of 4.00 x 1014 Hz.
Therefore, blue light has a more energy than red light.

Light is a stream of moving photons. The number of photons in a stream of light

determines if the light is dim or intense. Intense light has a lot of photons while dim light has
only a few photons. Red light has a very low frequency (red is at the low frequency end of
the visible spectrum), its number of photons is very few. It is the reason why red light is used
in the photographic darkroom and photographic films will not be exposed too much in using
red light.
Ultraviolet light has a very high frequency. It is very energetic due to the large
amount of photons it contains and it is easy to get sunburned when one is exposed to UV
light. Visible light has a lower frequency than UV light, it is not easy to get sunburned by
visible light.
The human eye distinguishes several hundreds of colors and shades. But it has only
three separate types of visual signals. The different signal perceptions of color are
combinations of the three visual signals. Perception of colors depends on the relative
stimulation of the three color sensitive cells in the retina of the eye and it does not correspond
to the unique set of wavelength.

Wavelength-Speed-Frequency Relation
The speed of a wave is determined by the number of waves passing through a point at
a certain time interval and the length of the wave or the wavelength. The speed of the wave is
the product of its frequency and its wavelength.
Speed= Frequency x wavelength
v = Fλ

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Where:
The speed of the wave is measure in meter/second
The frequency is measured in hertz
The wavelength is measured in meters

The density of the medium and its elasticity affect the speed of waves.

Example: A wave with frequency of 5 hertz (Hz) and a wavelength of 5 meters (m) has a
speed of 25 meters per second (5 Hz x 5 m=25m/s). A wave will change its speed when the
medium in which it is travelling is changed because the speed of a wave depend upon the
medium through which it travels.

Sample Problem:
A ray of light is moving in a glass medium. Its velocity in the medium is found to be 2.8 x
108 m/s. Find its frequency it its wavelength is 10 meters.
Given: v= 2.8 x 108 m/s
λ = 10 meters
Required: f
Solution:
v = fλ
f = v/λ
f = 2.8 x 108 m/s = 2.8 x 107 /s or Hz
10 m

The works of Planck with hot solids that emit electromagnetic radiation resulted in the
following discoveries:
• Radiation emitted by hot bodies depends on the temperature of the source.
• Light from these hot bodies, when pass through a prism, is dispersed into continuous
spectrum with one color blending into the next as a rainbow.
• A continuous spectrum comes from solid, liquids, and dense gases due to the
interaction of their atoms. The frequency of this emission is within a range
determined by its temperature. The spectra produced in this process are specific for a
substance.

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 • Hydrogen always produces the same colors of line in the same position.
• Helium has its own set of color line.
• Atomic spectra are similar to fingerprints that could be used to identify elements or
gas substance.

III. Directions/Instructions
Answer the following exercises provided below to check your understanding on the
given lesson. Please follow the instruction given in every activity. Do it on your own and
check your answer against the answer key provided at the end of this activity sheet.

IV. Exercises/Activities

Exercise 1: Read and understand the given statement. Write True if the statement is correct
and False if otherwise.
_______1. Visible lights have high frequency.

_______2. Nature of material is considered one of the factors for reflection of light.

_______3. Density of the medium affects the speed of waves.

_______4. When light enters another medium, its speed changes.

_______5. Blue light has low frequency so it is used in photographic film that will not

be exposed much.

_______6. Ultraviolet (UV) light has low frequency.

_______7. Thomas Young discovered that light exhibit interference behavior that

gives support to the Wave theory.

_______8. Dim light has a lot of photons.

_______9. In smooth surface, rays of incident light reflected at many different angle.

_______10. Velocity of light slows down upon entering a denser medium.

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Exercise 2: Problem Solving: Read the problem and identify the given and solve for the
required data. (5 points for each number)
1. If the speed of light is 2.0 x 108 m/s and its wavelength is 2.0 meters, find its
frequency.

2. Find the speed of light in a medium if its wavelength is 8.0 meters and its frequency
is 106 Hz.

Exercise #3

Multiple Choice: Read and understand the statements. Select and circle the letter of your
answer.

1. Light has properties of .

A. particles and waves C. curved motion and linear motion
B. waves and shadows D. projectiles
2. Rainbow formation is due to
A. reflection of sunlight in the sky C. reflection and refraction of sunlight in the sky
B. refraction of sunlight in the sky D. reflection and refraction of sunlight in a
raindrop.

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3. Which property of light waves makes the image seen through lenses?
A. reflection C. interference
B. refraction D. diffraction
4. What happens to light when it strikes on a plane mirror?
A. scattered C. diffracted
B. refracted D. regularly reflected
5. Which of the following is considered to be a harmful form of light?
A. visible light C. ultraviolet light
B. both A & C D. neither A nor C
6. What is the velocity of light moving in a medium if its frequency is 1.50 x 108 /s or Hz and
the wavelength is 5 meters.
A. 7.5 x 108 m/s C. 7.5 x 109 m/s
B. 6.5 x 108 m/s D. 6.5 x 109 m/s
7. Flat mirrors affect light by .
A. refracting it C. changing its speed
B. reflecting it D. changing its color
8. The speed of the wave is affected by .
A. density of the medium C. elasticity of the medium
B. both A & C D. neither A & C
9. The elementary particles of light that have properties of a wave ______.
A. electron C. proton
B. photon D. none of the above
10. The speed of light is ______.
A. 3 x 108 m/s C. 8 x 103 m/s
B. 3 x 108 m/s D. 4 x 103 m/s

V. Reflection
Having a better understanding now of light, describe how any of these properties or behaviors
have made your life more meaningful or enjoyable?

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VI. References for Learners
Here are some references used for this activity sheet and additional references that you can
visit if you have access to the internet:
• Physics (2nd edition) Delia Cordero-Navasa and Bienvenido J. Valdes
• Physical Science (Helen E. Caintic, PhD.)
• www.edu.gov.mb.ca
• www.olympus-lifescience.com

VII. Answer Key

Exercise 1:
1. False 6. False
2. True 7. True
3. True 8. False
4. True 9. False
5. False 10. True

Exercise 2:
1. Given: 2. Given:
Speed of light (v)= 2.0 x 108 wavelength (λ) = 8.0 meter
Wavelength (λ) = 2.0 meter Frequency (f) = 1 x 10 6 /s or Hz
Required: Frequency (f) Required: Speed of light (v)
Solution: Solution:
f = v/λ v= fλ
= 2.0 x 108 m/s = (1 x 106 /s ) (8.0 m)
2.0 m = 8 x 106 m/s
=1.0 x 108 /s or Hz

Exercise #3
1. A 6. A
2. B 7. A
3. B 8. C
4. D 9. C
5. C 10. A

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