REFLECTION PART 1

When light reflects off a surface, it follows some rather basic rules which have been gradually determined by observation. Consider the animation to the left. A ray of light approaches a reflecting horizontal surface at an angle of 45, bounces from the surface, and leaves at an angle of 45. So that we can agree fully on what we are talking about, we need to define a few terms: Incident Light Light approaching a surface is known as incident light. This is the incoming light before it has reached the surface.

Reflected Light After light has struck a surface and bounced off, it is known as reflected light. This is the light that is now departing from the surface.

Angle of Incidence The angle at which a ray of light approaches a surface, reflective or not, is called the angle of incidence. It is measured from an imaginary line perpendicular to the plane of the surface in question to the incoming ray of light.

Angle of Reflection Once the light has reflected from a reflective surface, the angle at which the light departs from the surface is called the angle of reflection. This angle is also measured from a perpendicular to the reflecting surface to the departing ray of light. When light reflects from a surface, the angle of reflection is always equal to the angle of incidence.

When multiple rays of light approach a reflecting surface, each individual ray behaves independently of all the others. Thus, in the figure to the left, each of the three incident rays depicted has its own individual angle of incidence, and each reflected ray has its corresponding angle of reflection. If all three angles of incidence are the same and the surface of reflection is perfectly flat as shown, all three angles of reflection will also be the same.

When the surface is irregular instead of flat, each ray of light still has its angle of incidence and its angle of reflection. However, the angle is measured at the point at which the light strikes the surface. Thus, as shown to the right, light striking an irregular surface gets scattered in all directions upon reflection. This is the case with ordinary walls and surfaces. Actually, this is all to the good, because it is this scattered reflected light by which we can see such walls and surfaces.

What is far more interesting and useful is what happens when the surface is smooth but curved. We'll see that situation on the next page. Part 2 Now that we have seen what reflection means and how light behaves as it reflects, let's take a look at a couple of special cases. Here, we look at reflecting surfaces that are smooth but curved. As you look at these examples, think of the distortions caused by the mirrors you might see in a fun house. Mirrors bent like this are entertaining, but can also be quite useful. If the reflecting surface is convex as shown to the left, parallel rays of light striking the surface will diverge from each other evenly. This type of reflector might be used to help illuminate a wider area from a single source of light, or to reflect light onto a shadowed space and allow a wider spread of illumination. If you look at your reflection in a Fun House mirror of this type, you will find that the farther away you are from the mirror, the larger your reflection appears, but your reflection is always right side up. This type of mirror, with only a mild curvature, is used to allow a

magnified view of a limited area. A typical application is for makeup application, since it allows closer and more accurate control of exactly where and how the makeup is applied.

When the surface is concave as shown to the right, light coming towards the mirror tends to converge towards a small area before continuing outward and away from the mirror. If you look at your own reflection in such a mirror, standing close you will see a normal but smaller reflection. As you back away, your reflection gets smaller yet, until you find a point where your reflection shrinks to a very small spot and nearly disappears! The point at this distance from the mirror is called the focus of the mirror, because the mirror tends to concentrate, or focus, all incoming light towards this point. As you step farther back from the mirror, your reflection gets larger again, but is inverted (upside down), because light from the bottom of the mirror is now above your eyes, while light from the top is below your eyes. If the mirror is shaped precisely as a solid, three-dimensional parabola, light arriving in parallel rays will converge to a very tight point, which is the focus of the parabola. This is the technique used in reflecting telescopes. It is also used in the other direction in spotlights. By putting a powerful light source at the focus, we can get a tight, parallel shaft of light to illuminate or highlight, for example, a single actor on a stage.

We'll halt the discussion of reflection for now, and go on to refraction. That topic is somewhat less intuitive than reflection, but is still reasonable once you identify in your own mind the essential factors that cause this phenomenon.