Total Internal Reflection and the Critical Angle

1. In figure (a) above, the light ray is refracted away from the normal when moving from
denser medium to less dense medium.
2. Figure (b) shows that, at a specific angle, the light ray is refracted 90o from the normal. It
is refracted so much that it is only just able to leave the water. In such condition, the
incident angle is called the critical angle.
3. The critical angle is the angle of incident in an optically denser medium for which the
angle of refraction is 90.
4. In figure (c), the light ray strikes the surface at an angle of incidence greater than c. There
is no refracted ray; the surface of the water acts like a perfect mirror, and the ray is said to
have been totally internally reflected.

The Equation Relates the Critical angle (c) with the Refractive Index

The critical angle can be calculated by using the following equation:

Requirements for Total Internal Reflection to occur.

1. The light ray must propagate from an optically denser medium to an optically less dense
medium.
2. The angle of incident must exceed the critical angle.
Phenomena Related to Total Internal Reflection
Mirage

1. The occurrence of mirage can be explained as follows.

2. The air on the road surface consists of many layers. On a hot day, the air near the ground has a
low specific heat capacity, hence the temperature increase faster.
3. The hot air becomes less dense than the cold air higher up.
4. A ray of light originated from the sky is refracted away from the normal as the light is travel from
denser to less dense air.
5. As the air passes through the lower layers, the angle of incidence increases and the refracted ray
is getting further away from the normal.
6. Finally, at a layer of air close to the road surface, the angle incidence exceeds the critical angle.
Total internal occurs and the light ray bends upward towards the eye of the observer.
7. The observer sees the image of the sky and the clouds on the surface of the road as a pool of
water.

Rain Bow

1. The spectrum of a rainbow is caused by total internal reflection in the water droplets.
2. Different angles of total internal reflection produces different colours.