If a wave hits a surface at an angle of 55 degrees, will the angle of refraction be the same as the angle of incidence or will it be perpendicular to the angle of incidence?

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If a wave hits a surface at an angle of 55 degrees, will the angle of refraction be the same as the angle of incidence or will it be perpendicular to the angle of incidence?

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Answer 1 · 2016-01-14T21:45:31

It all depends whether the wave is moving into an optically more dense or less dense medium.
Snell's Law governs the situation and is given by
#n_1sintheta_1=n_2sintheta_2#, where #n_i# are the respective refractive indices of the two materials.

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If a wave hits a surface at an angle of 55 degrees, will the angle of refraction be the same as the angle of incidence or will it be perpendicular to the angle of incidence?

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