Question

A beam of unpolarized light can be polarized by reflecting it from a flat surface?

1) True
2) False

Answer 1

Yes, a beam of unpolarized light can be polarized by reflecting it from a flat surface.

Step-by-step explanation:

Yes, a beam of unpolarized light can be polarized by reflecting it from a flat surface.

When unpolarized light is reflected from a surface, the vertically polarized light is preferentially refracted, leaving the reflected light more horizontally polarized. This is due to the phenomenon known as polarization by reflection.

For example, imagine the polarization direction of light to be like an arrow. Vertical polarization would be like an arrow perpendicular to the surface and would be more likely to stick and not be reflected. Horizontal polarization, on the other hand, is like an arrow bouncing on its side and would be more likely to be reflected.