Honors Physics – Refraction Supplemental Problems
1. A ray of light coming from air strikes a glass plate at an angle of 35o from the surface of the plate. The
reflected and refracted rays are perpendicular to each other. Find the index of refraction of the glass.
2. Show the paths of the rays of light going through and out the other side of each object Assume that
the light is coming from a less dense medium entering a more dense object.
3. Show the paths of the rays of light going through and out the other side of each object Assume that
the light is coming from a more dense medium entering a less dense object.
4. The index of refraction for the object shown below is 1.9, and it is surrounded by air. Show the path of
the light ray through and out of the object.
45o
5. Draw the path of the light through all of the layers and find the final angle of refraction as the light
passes through all the layers and exits into the flint glass.
75o
air
water
diamond
flint glass
6. What happens to the final angle of refraction if you switch the order of the materials in #5?
7. Find the final angle of refraction (after it has passed through and out the other side) for the prism
shown below. Consider that the prism is in air and has an index of refraction of 1.6.
40o
35o
70o
70o
8. Draw the path that the light would take through the prism for the above situation.
9. Find the distance  by which the original ray deviates from its original pathafter it has refracted while
passing through the block shown below. Consider that the block is in air and has an index of refraction
of 1.3.
67o
4 cm
= ?
10. A light is placed the bottom of a 5 meter deep swimming pool 4 meters from the edge. How far away
from the edge would an observer have to stand so that light coming from a far submerged corner
would be just visible to a viewer whose eyes are 1.5 meters above the horizontal?
1.5m
D=?
5m
4m
11. It takes 100 s for light to pass through a 20 km thick block of a transparent substance surrounded by
air. Determine the index of refraction of the block.
Answers
1. 1.43
7. 31.4o
4. c = 32o and final r = 90o to incident surface
9. 0.4 cm
5. 9o
10. 2.24 m
6. nothing
11. 1.5