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When a wave enters a new medium slows down and bends the wave undergoes what?
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
Diffraction, with light it splits the colors most notably in a prism.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoRefraction
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What is effect on wavelength of light when it enter dense medium?
When light enters a denser medium than it was previously travelling in, the wavelength gets shorter because the speed of the light slows down: v=w/f where v is the velocity of a wave, w is the wave length, and f is the frequency. When light enters the new medium, f does not change but v decreases so w also decreases. Actually, the density of the medium is not accurate. The medium is not denser it just is "optically denser" which means it has a higher index of refraction. It has nothing to do with actual density, which is weight divided by volume.
Why is light refracted when it passes from air to water?
Since water has a higher viscosity than air, light moves slower in water than in air. If light enters or leaves water at an angle, it bends according to a formula based on the difference in the viscosity of the two medium.
What happens to particles in a medium when sound energy travels through it?
slows down in denser mediums & speeds up in less dense ones this explains why ur voice is so high pitched when u inhale a less dense gas like helium & why sound is deep & distorted underwater.
Where does refraction occur?
Refraction occurs because waves move at different speeds in different bodies. Because a wave hits the other medium at an angle, part of the wave changes speed earlier than the rest, turning the waves. this is most obvious with light waves in water, but it happens with all types of waves in any change of medium.
What slows a soccer ball down after being kicked?
friction slows it down
What happens when light goes from a less dense medium to a more dense medium?
It slows and bends.
What happens when refraction occurs?
Refraction occurs when a wave bends as it crosses the boundary between different mediums (eg. air to glass). The wave bends because waves travel at different speeds in different mediums. When a wave enters a more dense medium (eg. air to glass), the wave slows down, and bends towards the 'normal'. When a wave enters a less dense medium (eg. glass to air), the wave speeds up, and bends away from the 'normal'. * The normal is an imaginary line which is perpendicular to where the light is entering the new medium.
When white light is refracted the amount that the light bends depends on what?
The medium. The denser the material the more light slows down as it enters. As it slows down the angle of refraction will be smaller than the angle of incidence and the ray will bend towards the normal. How much it bends will depend in the difference in speed which depends on the density of the material. The ratio between the 'speeds' is the refractive index. Look up refractive index and Snell's law.
When white light is refracted the amount that the light bends depends on the light's?
The medium. The denser the material the more light slows down as it enters. As it slows down the angle of refraction will be smaller than the angle of incidence and the ray will bend towards the normal. How much it bends will depend in the difference in speed which depends on the density of the material. The ratio between the 'speeds' is the refractive index. Look up refractive index and Snell's law.
Why does light bend when it is refracted?
Light bends when it is refracted because it goes through different mediums or substances and slows down. Because it slows down, the light doesn't go all the way through the medium so is in a different position.
Why does light bends when it passes from raerer media to denser media?
As it changes medium, say through glass, water or air it slows down. This is demonstrated with the equation c / n = v which is the speed of light divided by the refractive index is the velocity through that medium. Because it slows down it bends towards the "normal" which is an imaginary line extending at 90 degrees the surface. As it leaves the medium it will either speed up or slow down which will either bend it away or further towards the normal.
How do different materials affect light and sound waves?
Light slows as it enters material with a higher density whereas sound waves speed up in materials of higher density. Light bends towards the "normal" as it passes from a less dense medium to a higher density medium ie air into glass. Both sound and light can be reflected from surfaces.
Why does light refact when it passes from air into a glass slab?
When light passes into the slab it is changing medium from less to more dense. When that happens the light slows down and bends towards from the normal
Why a change in speed of light causes refraction of light?
It is only possible if light enters another medium with an angle other then 90. WHen it does so then some part of light enters the medium first and it slows down first while the other part enter after a while and slows down later. This time gap .For much better understanding see... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tyzci1qTVL8
What happens to the frequency as waves slows down?
The frequency of a wave is detemined by the source, and it stays constant, so if the wave enters a medium where the speed is slower, the wavelength becomes shorter.
Explain why light bends when it passes from one medium to another?
Light moves at the speed a medium permits. It is "handed off" to each bit of material in turn. One "side" of light encounters the different medium before the other, and so a turn is involved. Think of drivng a car along a road, with one tire on smooth pavement, and the other tire on rough pavement. You have to slightly turn the steering wheel to keep from turning across this interface between smooth (low n, high speed) and rough (high n, lower speed). Light *has* no steering wheel.
Why does refraction make us see water shallow?
when light moves into a different medium such as water it slows down and bends the rays towards the surface of the water you are looking at. The depth then appears to be less than it actually is.
