Final answer:
The law of reflection states that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection, and both angles are relative to the normal. In a flat mirror, an image appears the same distance behind the mirror as the object's distance in front.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Law of Reflection
The law of reflection plays a crucial role in understanding how light behaves when it encounters reflective surfaces, such as mirrors. The law states that the angle of incidence (θ4) is equal to the angle of reflection (θr). These angles are measured relative to the normal, which is the line perpendicular to the surface at the point of incidence.
In the context of image formation by reflection using a flat mirror, an object placed in front of the mirror will produce an image that appears to be the same distance behind the mirror as the object is in front of it. This image has the same height and orientation as the original object. When using ray tracing to analyze light behavior in mirror systems, one can also derive the mirror equation, which relates object and image distances to the focal lengths of the mirrors.
For the specific case where an object is placed 2 meters in front of a flat mirror, any ray, such as ray 1, which is normal to the mirror's surface, will reflect back on itself. A second ray, ray 2, incident at a 5° angle, will also reflect at the same angle due to the law of reflection. Both of these rays, when extended behind the mirror, appear to converge at the same distance as the object is in front of the mirror, which is 2 meters. In this case, there is no actual convergence point behind the mirror, as the image formed by a plane mirror is virtual and cannot be projected onto a screen.