Question

A ray of light in air is incident on a glass block, the light changes direction. State the name of this effect and the cause of this effect?

Answer 1

The bending of light as it passes from air to glass is known as refraction, caused by changes in light speed due to differences in optical density between the two media.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a light ray travels from air into a glass block and changes direction, this effect is called refraction. Refraction occurs when light passes from one medium to another with a different optical density, such as air to glass, leading to a change in the light ray's speed and an alteration of its path. This difference in speed between materials of varying refractive indices causes the light to bend at the interface of the two substances, thus changing direction as it enters the glass.

Answer 2

The name of this effect is refraction, which is the bending of light as it passes from one medium to another with a different refractive index.

The cause of this effect is the change in the speed of light as it enters a medium with a different refractive index. When light passes from air to glass, for example, its speed decreases and it bends towards the normal, an imaginary line perpendicular to the surface of the glass. When light passes from glass back into air, its speed increases again and it bends away from the normal.