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ELECTROMAGNETIC THEORY AND WAVES

Unit 2: Step 3 - To Understand The Waves Behavior In Open And Enclosure Mediums

GROUP 203058_31

STUDENT

TUTOR(A)

OPEN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY AND ADADANCE UNAD

CEAD BUCARAMANGA

Bucaramanga, october 14 of 2018.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP. .....................................................................................................3

1. Explain how refraction and reflection phenomenon could be used in transmission systems.

...............................................................................................................................................3

2. Explain the Snell law, the critical angle and practical applications where it could be used.

...............................................................................................................................................4

3. Explain the physics behind lenses for optical diseases. .......................................................5

4. What is the importance of the index of refraction? ..............................................................6

5. Is it possible that a single light beam be refracted into several beans? Explain. .................7

6. How is it possible to use the Brewster angle in practical applications?................................8

Choose one of the following problems, taken from “Cutnell, J. D., & Johnson, K. W. (2009),

John Wiley & Sons Ltd., New York & Paz, A. (2013)” solve it and share the solution in the

forum. Perform a critical analysis on the group members’ contributions and reply this in

the forum. .....................................................................................................................................10

1. When red light in vacuum is incident at the Brewster angle on a certain glass slab, the

angle of refraction is 〖35〗^o What are (a) the index of refraction of the glass and (b)

the Brewster angle? ...........................................................................................................10

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES. .........................................................................................12

ACTIVITIES TO DEVELOP
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Each student in the group has to answer the following questions using academic

references to support the research:

1. Explain how refraction and reflection phenomenon could be used in transmission

systems.

When a wave reaches the separation surface of two media of different nature, in

general, two new waves are produced, one that goes back to the starting medium and

another that crosses the boundary surface and propagates in the second medium. The first

phenomenon is called reflection and the second is called refraction.

We know that the transmission of information through fiber optic is done through

light. When a beam of light hits the surface that separates two media, in which the light

propagates with different speeds, part of it is transmitted and part is reflected. For any

means, the index of refraction n is defined as:

𝑐
𝑛=
𝑉

Where c is the speed of light in vacuum and V the speed of light in that medium.

With a simple laser pointer and a crystal prism inside a container that has water with a

few drops of milk, you can see the path of the light beam into the water as it reflects and

refracts. Observe that whenever there is reflection there is refraction.

2. Explain the Snell law, the critical angle and practical applications where it could be

used.
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Snell's law is a formula used to calculate the angle of refraction that light has when it

crosses the separation surface that exists between two different media.

𝑛1. 𝑠𝑒𝑛 𝑖 = 𝑛2 . 𝑠𝑒𝑛 𝑡

i-> incident angle (is the angle formed by the incident ray with the normal N).

t-> transmitted angle (is the angle formed by the beam transmitted with the normal N).

n1-> indicates the refractive index of the first medium.

n2-> shows the refractive index of the second medium.

From the above equation, it follows that when n2 <n1 there is an angle of incidence,

called the limit angle, from which refraction-> Total reflection does not occur.

i_L-> limit angle: i_L = arc sin (n2 / n1)

Refraction allows us to have lenses, magnifying glasses, prisms and rainbows. Even

our eyes depend on this curvature of light. Without refraction, we would not be able to

focus the light on our retina.

A critical angle or angle limit is defined as the angle from which there is no refraction

and all the incident light is reflected to the same medium from which it comes. Only total
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reflection can occur if the index of the medium in which we find ourselves is higher than

the index of the medium to which we are going.

According to the angle of incident ray, at one point it does not refract but goes parallel

to the boundary of the mediums. We called this angle as critical angle. If the angle of

incident ray is larger than the critical angle then it does not refract but it does total

reflection.

When we observe a mirage, these are originated by extreme cases of refraction of

light, and it is known as total reflection.

When we observe the mountains or the trees reflected in the waters of the rivers or

lakes.

In optical fibers.

3. Explain the physics behind lenses for optical diseases.

The eye has two main refractive surfaces: the cornea and the lens. Ideally, both work

in teams to refract the light in such a way that it can be focused on the retina. A layer of

light-sensitive tissue, located at the top of the eye. If something in this system stops

working properly, then the role of the lens becomes necessary. Imperfections in the
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cornea or lens cause the refracted light to focus in front or behind the retina, making the

images appear blurry.

Now we can correct these refractory errors with glasses or contact lenses that work by

refocusing the light so that it reaches the retina properly.

Strictly speaking, an optical lens is any entity capable of deflecting light rays. The

lenses are transparent objects (usually glass), limited by two surfaces, of which at least

one is curved.

4. What is the importance of the index of refraction?

In a vacuum, the light propagates at a speed of C = 3.0 × 108 while in any other

medium, it propagates more slowly. The relationship between "C" and the speed of light

in any other medium is called the refractive index of that material, represented as "n".

The refractive index is governed by Snell's law, by which, this property corresponds to

the division between the angles of incidence (angle between the ray in the first medium

and the perpendicular in the dividing surface) and refraction (angle) corresponding to the

second medium) n = sin (Ø1) / sin (Ø2).

The determination of the Refraction Index is influenced by the temperature and the

wavelength of the emitted light. Under controlled measurement conditions, it is a constant

property for a medium and allows determining the purity of a substance or quantifying a

given compound in binary mixtures of known constituents.

5. Is it possible that a single light beam be refracted into several beans? Explain.
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A beam of light can split in two when entering certain liquids, according to the 27

October PRL. The new experiments demonstrate the effect, predicted almost two

centuries ago, and also reveal another phenomenon: a ray can arrive at a boundary at one

angle and reflect at a slightly different angle. The work verifies a less-studied aspect of

optical physics and may also lead to more sensitive probes of the optical properties of

liquids.

Linearly polarized light has wave motion all in one plane, like waves made by jiggling

a rope up and down. In the early 19th century, French physicist Augustin Fresnel studied

“optically active” materials, which can change the polarization of light. He realized that

linearly polarized light can be regarded as equal parts right- and left-circularly polarized

light, wave motions that corkscrew in clockwise and counterclockwise fashion. To

explain certain experimental findings, he proposed that the two circular polarizations

travel at different speeds in optically active liquids.

Since light speed determines the angle of refraction, Fresnel also predicted that

linearly polarized light passing into an optically active liquid should split into two

separate beams of opposite circular polarization, diverging at an angle related to the

difference between the two speeds. While a similar effect is easily seen in anisotropic

crystals such as calcite, the divergence angle for liquids is no more than a few ten-

thousandths of a degree, say Ambarish Ghosh and Peer Fischer of the Rowland Institute

at Harvard University, who have now succeeded in detecting the phenomenon.

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Doing the splits. New experiments show that linearly polarized light entering a chiral

liquid split into two beams. A similar effect occurs with certain crystals such as calcite

(bottom) or quartz, which create a double image.

6. How is it possible to use the Brewster angle in practical applications?

3D movies require that each of your eyes sees a slightly different image. To see that

this is true, look at a scene with one eye blocked, then the other eye blocked. In a 3D

theater, both the left and right images are projected, but with opposite polarizations. The

3D glasses allow the left eye polarization to pass, while blocking the right eye image.

Vice versa for the other eye. So, you see a 3D image.

As mentioned, reflected light is partially polarized, depending on the angle of

reflection, and the refractive indices. For given media, there is a particular angle at which

the reflected beam is 100% polarized. This is Brewster’s angle.

In physics, the angle of Brewster (named in honor of the Scottish physicist Sir David

Brewster) corresponds to the angle of incidence of light, on a surface, which cancels the

component with polarization parallel to the plane of incidence.

When a beam of light impinges with the Brewster angle, the component of the

polarization parallel to the plane of incidence vanishes in the reflected beam. For this

reason, the beam we see reflected has a linear polarization, just in the direction

perpendicular to the plane of incidence, regardless of the type of polarization of the

incident beam. It should be noted that in the particular case of striking with a linearly

polarized beam in the direction parallel to the plane of incidence, the reflected beam
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vanishes at the Brewster angle. In this case, a total transmission of the beam between both

means is produced.

In general, the Brewster angle between two media depends on their electromagnetic

characteristics (electrical permittivity and magnetic permeability). In the case where the

magnetic permeabilities of both media do not vary (the most frequent case), the Brewster

angle can be calculated from the refractive indices of both media:

𝑛2
tan(𝛳𝐵 ) =
𝑛1
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Choose one of the following problems, taken from “Cutnell, J. D., & Johnson, K. W. (2009),

John Wiley & Sons Ltd., New York & Paz, A. (2013)” solve it and share the solution in the

forum. Perform a critical analysis on the group members’ contributions and reply this in

the forum.

1. When red light in vacuum is incident at the Brewster angle on a certain glass slab, the

angle of refraction is 𝟑𝟓° What are

a. the index of refraction of the glass and.

refractive index in the vacuum = 1.000

To calculate the refractive index of the glass, use the following formula.

𝒏𝟏 ∗ 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒊 = 𝒏𝟐 ∗ 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒓̂

Data:

𝑛2 = 1.000

𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂ = 90°

𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖 = 35°

𝑛1 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖 = 𝑛2 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂

we clear the equation

𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂
𝑛1 = 𝑛2 ∗
𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖

We replace values and solve.

𝑠𝑒𝑛(90)
𝑛1 = 1 ∗ = 1.74
𝑠𝑒𝑛(35)
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b. the Brewster angle?

To calculate the angle we will use the refraction formula.

𝒏𝟏 ∗ 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒊 = 𝒏𝟐 ∗ 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒓̂

Data:

n1 = 1.74

n2 = 1

𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖 = 35°

𝑛1 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖 = 𝑛2 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂

we clear the equation

𝑛1 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑖
𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂ =
𝑛2

We replace the values and solve the equation.

1.74 ∗ 𝑠𝑒𝑛(35)
𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂ = = 0.998
1

𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑟̂ = 0.998

we clear the 𝑟̂ .

𝑟̂ = 𝑎𝑟𝑐𝑠𝑒𝑛(0.998) = 86.37°
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

escire. (02/05/2010). Ángulo límite. Reflexión total.-S2004C3. Obtenido de

http://www.escire.com/tag/angulo-critico-o-angulo-limite/

SARICA, M. Ş. (s.f.). online physics tutorials. Recuperado el 14 de 10 de 2018, de

http://www.physicstutorials.org/pt/

universal, e. (23/04/2016). ¿Sabes cómo funcionan los lentes? Obtenido de

García, J. (7 NOVIEMBRE, 2012). Reflexión y refracción de la luz en transmisiones de fibra

óptica. Obtenido de https://www.seas.es/blog/automatizacion/reflexion-y-refraccion-de-

la-luz-en-transmisiones-de-fibra-optica/

rodriguez, l. (jueves, 2 de septiembre de 2010). optica fisica aplicada. Obtenido de

http://opticafisicaaplicadaleydebrewster.blogspot.com/2010/09/ley-de-brewster.html

Lindley, D. (November 1, 2006). Focus: Splitting a Light Beam in Two. Phys. Rev. Focus 18, 14.

Obtenido de https://physics.aps.org/story/v18/st14