Final answer:
The angle of minimum deviation for a ray of light entering a prism at an angle of 50° and suffering minimum deviation, when the angle of the prism is 60°, is calculated to be 40°.
Step-by-step explanation:
A ray of light falling at an angle of 50° is refracted through a prism and suffers minimum deviation. When a light ray undergoes minimum deviation through a prism, the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of emergence, and the ray passes symmetrically through the prism. This symmetry implies that the sum of the angle of incidence and the angle of emergence is equal to the sum of the angle of the prism and the angle of minimum deviation.
Let's denote the angle of the prism as A, the angle of incidence as i, the angle of emergence as e, and the angle of minimum deviation as D. We then have:
For the case of minimum deviation:
Thus:
Given that A = 60° and the angle of incidence i is 50°, we can solve for the angle of minimum deviation D:
Therefore, the angle of minimum deviation is 40°.