GEOMETRIC OPTICS

Light is a transverse wave made up of oscillating electric and magnetic fields.

Click here to view EM wave!

REFLECTION

When a light wave is incident upon a reflective surface (such as a mirror), it bounces back at the same angle that it came in at (measured with the normal to the reflective surface).

This is true for both• Plane mirrors• Spherical mirrors (concave and convex)

REFRACTION

When light enters a transparent material it slows down. This causes the light to bend!

This is true when light enters a medium through• Flat surfaces (like a plane of glass)• Curved surfaces (like a lens – either

converging or diverging)

Goals for the chapter:REFLECTION:

• Know how light rays reflect off a plane mirror

• Be able to draw ray diagrams for spherical mirrors.

• Be able to locate, size, and characterize images formed by spherical mirrors using equations

REFRACTION:

• Know how to calculate the speed of light in a medium

• Predict at what angle light rays refract upon entering a new medium

• Understand the phenomenon of dispersion

• Be able to calculate the critical angle for total internal reflection

• Be able to draw ray diagrams for thin lenses

• Be able to locate, size, and characterize images formed by spherical mirrors using equations

Preview …

CLICK HERE FOR MIRROR/LENS RAY DIAGRAM APPLET

the red arrow is the object; the blue arrow is the image of that object formed by the mirror/lens … move the red arrow around in the screen and see what happens!