Question

A flashlight beam strikes the surface of a pane of glass (n=1.56) at a 71° angle to the normal. What is the angle of refraction? Express your answer using two significant figures

Answer 1

The angle of refraction is 37°.

Step-by-step explanation:

let n1 be the refractive index of glass and n2 = 1.0 be the refraction index of air, θ be the angle of incidence , ∅ be the angle of refraction.

then, according to Snell's law:

n1×sin(∅) = n2×sin(θ)

sin(∅) = n2×sin(θ)/n1

= (1.0)(sin(71°))/(1.56)

= 0.606101651

∅ = 37°

Therefore, the angle of refraction is 37°.