BAL BHARATI PUBLIC SCHOOL, Pitampura

CLASS VIII

LIGHT

The ray of light which falls on the mirror surface is called incident ray.
The point at which the incident ray strikes the mirror is called the point of
incidence.
The ray of light which is sent back by the mirror is called the reflected ray.
The normal is a line drawn at right angles to the mirror surface at the point of
incidence.
The angle between incident ray and normal is called the angle of incidence.
The angle between reflected ray and normal is called the angle of reflection.

Laws of reflection of light:

The incident ray, the reflected ray, and the normal {at the point of incidence}, all
lie in the same plane.
The angle of reflection is always equal to the angle of incidence.

Regular Reflection and Diffuse Reflection of Light

Regular Reflection

In regular reflection, a parallel beam of incident light is reflected as a parallel

beam in one direction.

Regular reflection of light occurs from smooth surfaces like that of a plain
mirror.
Images are formed by regular reflection of light.

Diffused Reflection

In Diffuse reflection, a parallel beam of incident light is reflected in different

directions.
The diffuse reflection of light takes place from rough surfaces
A sheet of paper produces diffuse reflection of light. No image is formed in
diffuse reflection of light.

Characteristics of image formed by a plane mirror

The image formed by a plane mirror is virtual & Erect.

The image formed in a plane mirror is the same distance behind the mirror as the
object is in front of it.
The image formed in a plane mirror is of the same size as the object.
The image in a plane mirror is laterally inverted.

Periscope
A Periscope is a device through which a person can se the objects that are out of the
direct line of sight. For example, by using a periscope, we can see the objects on the
other side of a high wall which cannot be seen by us directly. Periscope has two plane
mirrors arranged parallel to one another. Each plane mirror, however, makes an angle
of 45 0 with the side of the tube.
Some of the uses of periscopes are given below:
Periscope is used to see over the heads of a crowd
A Periscope is used by soldiers sitting in bunker to observe the enemy
activities outside {over the ground}.
A Periscope is used by a navy officer sitting in a submarine to see
ships over the surface of water in the sea.

Multiple Images
When two plane mirrors are kept inclined at an angle, they can form
multiple images of an object. If two plane mirrors are inclined at an angle
x, then the number of images formed in them is given by the formula:
No. of images formed = (360 0 / x ) - 1

Kaleidoscope
The kaleidoscope is an instrument which produce multiple reflections of
coloured glass pieces {or coloured plastic pieces} and create beautiful
patterns.
Construction

The Kaleidoscope consists of three long and narrow strips of plane mirrors inclined at
60 0 to one another forming a hollow prism, and fitted into a cardboard tube. One end
of the cardboard tube is closed by an opaque disc {cardboard disc} having a small
hole at its centre. The other end of cardboard tube is closed with circular discs of
glass. The inner disc being of transparent glass {clear glass } and the outer disc of
ground glass {translucent glass}. A number of small pieces of different coloured glass
{or plastic } and having different shapes are kept between the two glass discs {which
can move around freely in the space between the two glass discs}.
When we hold the kaleidoscope tube towards light and look inside it through the
small hole, we see beautiful patterns of coloured glass.
Patterns formed by Kaleidoscope:

Dispersion of light
The splitting up of white light into seven colours on passing through a transparent
medium like a glass prism is called dispersion of light. The seven colours of the
spectrum of white light are: violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and Red.

The Human Eye

The main parts of the human eye are : Cornea, Iris, Pupil, Ciliary muscles, Eye
lens {which is a flexible convex lens}, Retina and Optic nerve.

Cornea is made of a transparent substance

The light coming from an object enters into the eye through cornea. Function
of cornea is to protect the eye.
Iris is the colored part of the eye. The iris has a hole at its centre which is
called pupil. Pupil appears like a dark spot in the centre of iris because no
light is reflected from it. Iris controls the amount of light entering the eye by
adjusting the size of pupil.
The eye-lens is a convex lens made of a transparent and flexible material.
The eye-lens is held in position by ciliary muscles. The function of ciliary
muscle is to hold the lens & changes its size according to the need.
The retina is a screen on which the image is formed in the eye.
The optic nerve carries the image formed on retina to the brain in the form of
electrical signals.

Rods and cones

Rods are the rod-shaped cells present in the retina of an eye which are
sensitive to dim light.
Cones are the cone-shaped cells present in the retina of an eye which are
sensitive to bright light. Cones also cause the sensation of colour of objects
in our eyes.

Blind spot
At the junction of optic nerve and retina in the eye, there are no light sensitive cells {no
rods or cones }due to which no vision is possible at spot. This is called blind spot.

Persistence of vision
The image of an object seen by our eyes persists {or remains}on the retina for about
1/16th of a second even after the object has disappeared from our view. The abilily of an
eye to continue to see the image of an object for a very shot duration even after the object
has disappeared from view, is called persistence of vision.
Defects of the Eye:
a) Myopia (short-sightedness) : In this defect the person is able to see the near by objects
but not able to see the far-off objects.
This defect can be corrected by using spectacles containing Concave lens.
b) Hypermetropia (Far-sightedness) : In this defect the person is able to see the far-off
objects but not able to see the near by objects.
This defect can be corrected by using spectacles containing Convex lens.

c) Cataract : Cataract develops when the eye lens of person becomes cloudy (or even
opaque) due to the formation of membrane over it. Cataract decreases the vision of the
eye gradually. It can even lead to total loss of vision of the eye.
The opaque lens is removed from the eye of the person by surgical operation & a new
artificial lens is inserted in its place.

Points to remember
1.)
There can be only one reflected ray for a given single incident ray falling on a
plane mirror.
2.)
A ray of light which is incident normally on a mirror is reflected back along the
same path because the angle of incidence for such a ray of light is 0o the angle of
reflection is also 0o.
3.)

Diffuse reflection is caused by the roughness in the reflecting surface of an object.

4.)

Laws of reflection are valid for both regular reflection & irregular reflection.

5.)
If a person is standing at a distance of 1 metre in front of a plane mirror, then
distance between the person & his image will be 2 metres.
6.)
In an image formed by plane mirror, the left side of the object appears on the right
side in the image whereas the right side of the object appears on the left side in the image.
This change of sides of an object & its mirror image is called Lateral inversion.
7.)
As the angle between the two plane mirrors decreases, the number of images
formed increases.
When the angle between the two plane mirrors becomes 0o ie. When the two mirrors are
parallel to each other then infinite number of images is formed.
8.)
An interesting feature of a kaleidoscope is that we can never see the same patterns
again. Every time a new pattern is formed. Kaleidoscope are used by designers of wall
papers & fabrics, as well as by artists to get ideas for new patterns.
9.) Rainbow in the sky is natural phenomenon showing the dispersion of sunlight.
Rainbow is produced by the dispersion of sunlight by the tiny rain drops suspended in the
atmosphere (which act as tiny prisms made of water).
10.) The adjustment of the size of pupil takes some time. That when we go from a
bright light to a darkened cinema hall, at first we cannot see our surroundings clearly.
11.) The range of vision of a normal human eye is from infinity to about 25
centimetres.