Question

what is the refraction of light

Answer 1

Refraction is the change in direction of wave propagation due to a change in its transmission medium.

The phenomenon is explained by the conservation of energy and the conservation of momentum. Owing to the change of medium, the phase velocity of the wave is changed but its frequency remains constant. This is most commonly observed when a wave passes from one medium to another at any angle other than 0° from the normal. Refraction of light is the most commonly observed phenomenon, but any type of wave can refract when it interacts with a medium, for example when sound waves pass from one medium into another or when water waves move into water of a different depth. Refraction follows Snell's law, which states that, for a given pair of media and a wave with a single frequency, the ratio of the sines of the angle of incidence θ1 and angle of refraction θ2 is equivalent to the ratio of phase velocities (v1 / v2) in the two media, or equivalently, to relative indices of refraction (n2 / n1) of the two media. Epsilon( {\displaystyle \epsilon }) and mu( {\displaystyle \mu }) represent the dielectric constant and the magnetic moment of the different media:[1]

{\displaystyle {\frac {\sin \theta _{1}}{\sin \theta _{2}}}={\frac {v_{1}}{v_{2}}}={\frac {n_{2}}{n_{1}}}={\sqrt {\left({\frac {\epsilon _{2}\mu _{2}}{\epsilon _{1}\mu _{1}}}\right)}}}
In general, the incident wave is partially refracted and partially reflected (internal refraction); the details of this behavior are described by the Fresnel equations.

Answer 2

Refraction of light : The bending nature of light when light passes from one medium to another medium.
Example : when light passes from air to water.