Question

The index of refraction for a certain type of glass is 1.645 for blue light and 1.605 for red light. A beam of white light (one that contains all colors) enters a plate of glass from the air, n air ≈1, at an incidence angle of 36.55∘. What is the absolute value of δ, the angle in the glass between blue and red parts of the refracted beams?

Answer 1

The angle between the blue and red parts of the refracted beams is approximately 0.5 degrees.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a beam of white light enters a plate of glass from air, the different colors of light refract at different angles due to their different wavelengths and the different indices of refraction for each color. To find the angle between the blue and red parts of the refracted beams, we can use Snell's law which states that the ratio of the sine of the angle of incidence to the sine of the angle of refraction is equal to the ratio of the indices of refraction.

In this case, the angle of incidence is 36.55 degrees. Let's assume that the angle of refraction for the blue light is δ degrees. We can calculate the angle of refraction for the red light using the equation:

sin(36.55) / sin(δ) = 1.645 / 1.605

Solving for δ, we find that the angle of refraction for the red light is approximately 36.05 degrees. Therefore, the absolute value of δ, the angle between the blue and red parts of the refracted beams, is approximately |36.55 - 36.05| = 0.5 degrees.