Bending Light
Light bends when it travels from one transparent substance to another. The bending of light is known as refraction.
The light changes speed when it changes substance - this causes the light to refract.
| http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v455/n7211/images/455299a-f1.2.jpg |
The density of a substance affects the refraction of the light. When it travels from a less dense substance to a more dense substance, it slows down and bends inward.
When light travels from a more dense to a less dense substance, it bends away from the normal.
|
Giancoli, Douglas. Physics:
Principles with Applications. p. 643,
fig.23-19 |
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