When a light passes from glass to air, which of the following is correct for the path of the light?
From glass to air means from an optically denser medium to a lighter one, the light path will refract away from the normal.
When light passes from glass to air, the correct path of light is determined by the principles of refraction. Refraction is the bending of light as it travels from one medium to another due to the change in the medium's optical density. To determine the path of the light, you need to consider the angle of incidence and the refractive indices of the two media involved.
The angle of incidence is the angle formed between the incident light ray and the normal line (a line perpendicular to the surface) at the point of incidence. The refractive index of a medium indicates how much it slows down the speed of light compared to its speed in a vacuum.
In this case, as light passes from glass (a denser medium) to air (a less dense medium), the following happens:
1. The incident light ray approaches the interface (boundary) between the two media.
2. The angle of incidence is measured between the incident light ray and the normal line at the point of incidence.
3. The light ray is refracted, or bent, away from the normal line as it enters the less dense medium (air).
4. The angle of refraction is the angle formed between the refracted light ray and the normal line within the less dense medium.
5. The angle of incidence and the angle of refraction are related by Snell's law, which states that the ratio of the sines of the two angles is equal to the ratio of the refractive indices of the two media.
In this specific scenario, the path of the light would be from the glass to the air, with the light ray bending away from the normal line at the interface between the two media.