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Sound and Light Waves

• Sound waves  mechanical waves : originate

from a vibrating object
• Light waves  electromagnetic waves :
energy radiated from the sun

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Sound waves
• Amplitude
 loudness
• Frequency
 pitch

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Light waves

This bending of light rays at an angulated interface is known

as refraction.Note particularly that the degree of refraction
increases as a function of (1) the ratio of the two refractive
indices of the two transparent media and (2) the degree of
angulation between the interface and the entering wave
front.

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A light wave travels through three transparent

materials of equal thickness. Rank is order, from
the largest to smallest, the indices of refraction
n1, n2, and n3.

A. n2 > n1 > n3 B. n3 > n1 > n2 C. n1 > n2 > n3

D. n3 > n2 > n1 E. n1 = n2 = n3

Lights and Lenses

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Reflexion and Refraction

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Refractive index
Refraction
• Is the change of direction of light as it
passes from one medium to another.

Angle of incidence, i
Refractive index

The refractive index of a material, n, is a

measure of how much a substance can refract
a light ray. image
Angle of refraction, r

actual location

different different

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26.2 Snell’s Law and the Refraction of Light

SNELL’S LAW

SNELL’S LAW OF REFRACTION

When light travels from a material with

one index of refraction to a material with
a different index of refraction, the angle
of incidence is related to the angle of
refraction by

n1 sin 1  n2 sin  2

26.2 Snell’s Law and the Refraction of Light

Example 1 Determining the Angle of Refraction

A light ray strikes an air/water surface at an

angle of 46 degrees with respect to the
normal. Find the angle of refraction when
the direction of the ray is (a) from air to
water and (b) from water to air.

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26.2 Snell’s Law and the Refraction of Light

n1 sin 1 1.00sin 46

(a) sin  2    0.54
n2 1.33

 2  33

n1 sin 1 1.33sin 46

(b) sin  2    0.96
n2 1.00

 2  74

Lenses

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Thin Lens Shapes

• These are examples of converging
lenses
• They have positive focal lengths
• They are thickest in the middle

• These are examples of diverging

lenses
• They have negative focal lengths
• They are thickest at the edges

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The effect of a converging lens and of a

diverging lens on a beam of parallel light rays

Images in convex lens

The image formed by a convex lens is always
real and inverted until the object moved nearer
to the lens than its focal length; the image
becomes erect and virtual.

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Images in concave lens

The image formed by a convex lens is always
virtual and erect.

When numerical values are substituted into

the formula, the sign convention ‘real is
positive; virtual is negative’ is used for the
object and image distances.
The focal length, f, of a converging lens is
always assigned a positive value. A diverging
lens is always assigned a negative value.

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Focusing Elements

• Refractive indicies within the eye

Aqueous Humour 1.33 Vitreous Humour 1.33

Cornea 1.37

Crystalline Lens 1.38 (outer layers)

1.41 (inner layers)

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The Eye
Image formation
• Light converges on the retina
• Path of rays is changed by the eye by refraction (carried out by cornea and lens)
• Ciliary muscles change the shape of the lens to keep image focussed on retina if the distance alters.
– Contracted ciliary muscles = loose ligament = lens more rounded = focus on nearby objects
– Relaxed ciliary muscles = taut ligaments = lens flattened = focus on distant objects
• No limit to how far away you can focus – far point is at infinity
• You near point is approx. 25cms – nearer and image is blurred.
Accommodation/ Focussing

Eye structure diagram

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