Question

Which of the following statements correctly describes the behavior of a ray of light traveling in a direction perpendicular to the boundary of a parallel glass slab?

A) It bends towards the normal as it enters the glass slab and bends away from the normal as it exits the glass slab.
B) It continues in a straight line without any deviation.
C) It reflects back into the same medium at an angle equal to the incident angle.
D) It rets but follows the same path as the incident ray.

Answer 1

The ray of light bends towards the normal as it enters the glass slab and bends away from the normal as it exits the glass slab.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct statement describing the behavior of a ray of light traveling in a direction perpendicular to the boundary of a parallel glass slab is A) It bends towards the normal as it enters the glass slab and bends away from the normal as it exits the glass slab.

This behavior is known as refraction. When light travels from one medium (such as air) to another medium (such as glass) with a different refractive index, the ray of light changes its direction as a result of refraction.

In this case, since the ray is traveling perpendicular to the boundary, it will bend towards the normal as it enters the glass slab and bend away from the normal as it exits the glass slab. This can be observed in Figure 25.11 (a) provided as a reference.