Question

Index of refraction is defined as the speed of light in a vacuum divided by the speed of light in the medium. What is the index of refraction for a glass sample? Speed of light in a vacuum c = 3.0 x 108 m/s. Speed of light in the glass = 1.50 x 108 m/s.

Answer 1

Given:

The speed of light in a vacuum is

`c=\text{ 3}*10^8\text{ m/s}`

The speed of light in glass is

`v=1.5*10^8\text{ m/s}`

Required: Index of refraction for a glass

Step-by-step explanation:

The index of refraction is given by the formula

`n=(c)/(v)`

On substituting the values, the index of refraction is

`\begin{gathered} n=\frac{3*10^8\text{ m/s}}{1.5*10^8\text{ m/s}} \\ =\text{ 2} \end{gathered}`

Final answer: The index of refraction of glass is 2.