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A ray of light falls on a transparent glass plate. A part of it is reflected and a part is refracted. The reflected and refracted rays can be perpendicular to each other for
Explanation
When a ray of light falls on a transparent glass plate, it undergoes both reflection and refraction. According to Brewster's Law, there exists a specific angle of incidence, known as Brewster's angle or the polarizing angle, at which the reflected and refracted rays are mutually perpendicular [t3][t5]. At this unique angle, the sum of the angle of reflection and the angle of refraction is 90 degrees [t6]. Since the angle of reflection equals the angle of incidence, this condition is mathematically expressed as tan(i) = n, where 'n' is the refractive index of the glass [t6][t9]. For a given pair of media (air and glass), the refractive index is a constant value, meaning there is only one specific angle of incidence that satisfies this perpendicularity condition [t5][t10]. Therefore, the rays are perpendicular for only one angle of incidence.
Sources
- [1] https://www.britannica.com/science/Brewsters-law