HUYGEN’S PRINCIPLE AND INTERFERENCE

1.Show that the law of conservation of energy is obeyed during interference of light.
Ans. Let amplitudes of low independent sources be a and b. Their respective individual intensities will be
I1  a 2 and I 2  b 2
Combination intensity before interference
 I1  I 2  a 2  b 2
When interferenec takes place I max   a  b  and I min   a  b 
2 2

If I av is the average intensity, then

 a  b   a  b
2 2
I I
I av  m ax min 
2 2
a 2  b 2  2ab  a 2  b 2  2ab 2  a  b 
2 2

I av  
2 2
Or I av  a  b
2 2

 Averageintensity in both the cases in a 2  b 2

Hence there is no energy loss or gain during interference and energy is conserved.
2. In Young's experiment the double slit is first covered by red cellophone paper and then by blue. What change will be
observed in fringe Width?
Ans.    , frings width decreases.
3. Why is it not possible to detect interference pattern when two coherent sources are too apart ?
1

Ans. As frings width d
Therefore, when d is so large, the width may reduce beyond the visible region. Hence the pattern will not be seen.
4. If the Young's apparatus be immersed in water, then what will be the effect on the fringe width ?
Ans. Fringe width decreases by a factor of 
5. State Huygen's principle and using this principle prove the laws of refraction of light.
Ans. Huygen’s Principle: Acc. To this principle:
1. Every point on a wavefront may be considered as a fresh source that produces secondary wavelets.
2. These wavelets propagate in the forward direction with a speed equal to the speed of the wave motion. The
surface which touches these wavelets at any later instant is the position of the new wavefront, called the
secondary wavefront.
3. Energy Flows in forward direction.
REFRACTION OF PLANE WAVEFRONT AT PLANE SURFACE
Let AT be a surface separating the two media (1) and (2) of refractive indices µ1 and µ2 respectively and let v1 and v2 be
the speeds of light waves in (1) and (2) respectively. Let AC be a plane
wavefront incident on AT. Lines AA' and CC' which are normals to the
incident plane wavefront (i.e., AC) are called incident rays [Fig.].
If CN is the normal at the point C, then C '' CN  i (angle of
incidence). Angle of incidence is also the angle which the
incident plane wave front makes with the plane XY, i.e.,
ACY  i . The points A and C on this wave front will serve as the
sources of disturbance and will give out secondary wavelets. During
the time the secondary wavelet from A strikes the surface XY at D, the
secondary wavelet from C would have travelled a distance CE in the
medium-2 where the distance CE is such that time taken by the
secondary wavelet to travel a distance AD in the medium-1 = time
taken by the secondary wavelet to travel a distance CE in the medium-2, i.e.
AD CE
 (as time = distance/velocity)
1 2
AD  1
or  ...........(*)
CE  2
The lines like DD', HH' and EE', which are perpendicular to DE are called the refracted rays. If DN' is the normal at the
point D, then D ' DN '  r (angle of refraction). Angle of refraction is also the angle which the refracted plane wave
front DE makes with XY, i.e., EDC  r .
AD
From ΔCAD , sin i  ...... 1
CD
CE
Also, from CED,sin r  ........  2 
CD
From eqns. (1) and (2),
sin i AD CD AD v1
     from eqn. *  .........  3
sin r Cd CE CE v2 
c v 
As v , 1  2
 v2 1
From eqns. (8) and (9),
or 1 sin i  2 sin r ....... 10
which is the Snell's law (first law of refraction). It is also clear from the figure that the incident ray, the refracted ray
and the normal at the point of incidence all lie in the same plane, which is the second law of refraction.
6. Using Huygen's principle for propagation of light Verify Law of reflection.
Ans.
REFLECTION OF PLANE WAVEFRONT AT PLANE SURFACE
Let XY be a reflecting surface and AC be a plane wave- front incident on it. Lines AA' and CC' which are normals to the
incident plane wavefront, are called the incident rays [Fig.].

If CN is the normal at the point C, then C ' CN  i (angle of incidence). Angle of incidence is also the angle which the
incident plane wavefront makes with the plane XY, i.e., ACY  i . The points A and C on this wavefront will serve as
the sources of disturbance and will give out secondary wavelets. During the time the secondary wavelets from A strikes
the surface XY at D, the secondary wavelets from C would have travelled a distance CE(=AD).
Since Δs CAD and CED are congruent,
[ as CAD  CED  900 and AD = CE, CD = CD (common)]
ACD  EDC
Again as FG CA,
From eqns. (2) and (3)
GFD  CED  HDF
Further, as Δs FGD and FHD are congruent,
[ as GFD  FGD  900 and FD=FD(common)]
FH=GD
which is the required condition
The lines like DD', HH' and EE', which are perpendicular to DE are called the reflected rays. If DN' is normal at the point
D, then D ' DN = r (angle of reflection). Angle of reflection is also the angle which the reflected plane wavefront DE
makes with XY, i.e., EDC = r.
As ACD  i and EDC  r, from eqn. (2),
i=r
Hence, angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection. This is the first law of reflection.
It is also clear from the figure that the incident ray, the reflected ray and the normal at the point of incidence all lie in
the same plane. This is the second law of reflection.
7. Derive an expression for fringe width using Young's double slit method for interference of light. What will happen,
ifthe distance between the two slits becomes nearly zero ?
Ans.

8. What is interference of light ? Prove that the law of conservation of energy is obeyed during interference of light.
Ans. The phenomenon of redistribution of light energy due to superposition of two or more light waves having the
same wavelength, travelling in the same direction and having constant (or stable) phase difference between them is
called interference.
. Let amplitudes of low independent sources be a and b. Their respective individual intensities will be
I1  a 2 and I 2  b 2
Combination intensity before interference
 I1  I 2  a 2  b 2
When interferenec takes place I max   a  b  and I min   a  b 
2 2

If I av is the average intensity, then

 a  b   a  b
2 2
I I
I av  m ax min 
2 2
a 2  b 2  2ab  a 2  b 2  2ab 2  a  b 
2 2

I av  
2 2
Or I av  a  b
2 2

 Average intensity in both the cases in a 2  b 2

Hence there is no energy loss or gain during interference and energy is conserved.
9. What is Interference of light ? Give one example from daily life. State the necessary conditions for sustained
interference.
Ans. conditions for sustained interference. To produce stationery inetrference, following condition should be fulfilled.
(i)The two sources should emit continuosly the waves at the wavelength, period or frequency.
(ii) The two coherent sources should lie very narrow.
(iii) The two sources must be very narrow.
(iv) The two sourcesshould be coherent i.e,they should emit continuously the waves either in the same phase or with a
constant phase difference
10. What is Diffraction and Interference of light ? State the differences between them.
Ans.
Interference Diffraction
1. Interference is the result of interraction of light 1. Diffraction pattern is the result of interfraction of
coming from two different wavelength originating from light coming from different parts of the same
two coherent sources wavefront
2. Interference frings may or may not be of the same 2. Diffraction fringes are not of the same width
width 3. Minimas of diffraction fringes are never perfectly
3.minimas of interference fringes are of zero intensity. dark
4. Interference fringed are of same intensity 4. In diffraction fringes, the intensity fail repidly.
11. With the help of a diagram, explain Huygen's principle for propagation of light in a medium.
Ans. Christian Huygens, in 1678, put forth a hypothesis for constructing new wavefronts. This hypothesis is
stated as follows.
1. Every point on a wavefront may be considered as a fresh source that produces secondary wavelets.
2. These wavelets propagate in the forward direction with a speed equal to the speed of the wave motion. The
surface which touches these wavelets at any later instant is the position of the new wavefront, called the
secondary wavefront.
3. Energy Flows in forward direction.
To find the position of the secondary wavefront after a time t', consider points 1, 2, 3, 4... etc., on XY and draw
spherical surfaces, each of radius vt, with these points as their centres. These spherical surfaces represent the
secondary wavelets. Draw a surface XT' touching these surfaces. The surface X'Y', which is called the secondary
wavefront, is the position of the primary wavefront XY after a time t'. Since SA, SB, SC are perpendiculars to the
wavefronts XY and X'Y', these are, clearly, the rays of light. At large distances, XY and X'Y' become plane surfaces
[Fig. (b)] and as such these are called the plane wavefronts. The rays of light A, B, C are parallel in this case. It is thus
clear that:
A parallel beam of light gives rise to a plane wavefront whereas a convergent or a divergent beam of light gives rise
to a spherical wavefront.

Huygens's principle is very useful in explaining and predicting many useful properties of light as discussed in the
following articles.
12. Explain the statement 'light added to light can produce darkness.
Ans. When light waves from two coherent sources superimpose such that at any particular point, crest of one wave
falls on troigh of the other and trough falls on crest, the amplitude of the resultant wave is zero. Hence resultant
intensity is zero. This is the phenomenon of destructive interference. Thus light added to light produces darkness
13. Write necessary conditions for sustained interference of light.
Ans. Same As 10th
DIFRACTION AND POLARISATION
1.Distinguish between interference and diffraction.
Ans. Same as 11th
2. State and prove Brewster's law of polarisation light.
Ans. Brewster Law
Malus experimentally found that light gets polarised to some extent whenever it is reflected by a transparent material. Brewster
later found that if angle of incidence is varied the extent to which polarisation occurs also
changes. At one particular angle of incidence ip, the reflected ray is completely
polarised. This angle is known as angle of polarisation.
According to Brewster law, the tangent of angle of polarisation is always equal to the refractive
index of reflecting medium, tan ip = 
BOY+COY = 900.
BOY= 90- ip, COY = 90 –r
 90 – ip + 90-r = 900.
 ip+r =900.  r = 900-ip
Acc. To Snell’s law
sin i sin i p sin i p
 =   tan i p
sin r sin(90  i p ) cos i p
  tan i p
Thus, Brewster law can also be stated as that " if angle of incidence is equal to the polarising angle then reflected and refracted
ray are perpendicular to each other."
3. How is polarisation a convincing evidence of transverse nature of LIGHT ?

E
Ans. The phenomenon of confinement of the electric vector   of light to a single direction on passing through
tourmaline crystal or nicol prism or a Polaroid (known as polarizer) is called polarization.
4. What is diffraction of light ? Why can sound waves be diffracted more easily than light waves ?
Ans. It is phenomena of bending of light across the corners of an obstacle or object.
The wavelength of sound is much greater than that of light waves and its comparable with the size of the obstacle
which is the essential condition for diffraction of eaves. So diffraction of sound is more pronounced in daily life than
that of light waves
5. Describe an experiment to demonstrate the transverse nature of light.
Ans. Transverse nature of electromagnetic waves. Consider a rectangular parallelopiped ABCDEFGH such that the length of its
three edges parallel to X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis are a, b and c respectively. Suppose that any time t, the wave front reaches its face
ABCD. The electric and magnetic fields will be zero region to the right of face ABCD and non zero to the left to face ABCD further,
as the electromagnetic wave is a plane moving along X-axis the electric and magnetic fields will not depend on Y and Z.

Since the rectangular parallelopiped does not enclose any charges, then according to Gauss’s law, the total electric flux across its
                 
surfaces must be zero. 
 ABCD
 E .d S  
OEFG
E . d S    
  EFCB
E . d S  
OADG
E . d S    
 CDGF
E . d S   . d S 
OABE
E

Since y-component of electric field does not change with time, the
electric flux through faces BCFG and ADEH will be equal and opposite and
hence contribution of third and fourth integrals will cancel out.
Similarly, contribution of fifth and sixth integrals will also cancel out in pair
as z-component of electric field also does not vary with time, therefore,
equation (1) become
   


ABCD
E .d S + 
OEFG
E .d S = 0

If Ex ' and Ex are values of x component of electric field at faces ABCD and
EFGH,

then
 


ABCD
E . d S = E 'x ( area of face ABCD) = E 'x ( b  c) = bc E 'x

 


EFGH
E . d S = - E 'x ( area of face EFGH) = - E x ( b  c) = bc E x

The negative sign due to the fact that electric flux across the face EFGH is in a direction opposite to that across in face ABCD.

Therefore, equation (2) becomes

bc ( E ' x  E x ) = 0

Since bc cannot be zero, we have

 ( E ' x  Ex ) = 0

There can be two possibilities i.e. either (i) E 'x = Ex or (ii) E 'x = Ex =0

In case E 'x = Ex it would mean that electric field associated with the electromagnetic wave is static and it can’t account for the
propagation of a wave of finite wavelength. Hence, both Ex and E 'x are zero i.e. electric field does not have component along
the direction of propagation. The same can be proved for magnetic field also.

Hence, it may be concluded that when an electromagnetic wave propagates, electric and magnetic fields are perpendicular to the
direction of propagation i.e. electromagnetic wave is transverse in nature.

6. Differentiate between polarised and unpolarised light. How are they represented?
Ans. When analyser (nicol prism, tourmaline crystal, poalroid, etc.) is rotated in front of the source emitting
unpolarised light, the intensity of transmitted light remains incharged. In case of linearly or plane polarised light, when
analyser is rotated, the intensity of transmitted light varies between zero and maximum twice in each rotation of the
analyser.
7. What do you mean by Polarization of light ? How is polarized and unpolarized light represented ? How will you prove
that light is transverse wave in nature ?
Ans. Polarisation of light: When ordinary light passes through tourmaline crystal, out of all vibrations symmetrical about the
direction of propagation. Only those through it which are parallel to its crystallographic axis AB. Therefore , on emerging through
the crystal, the vibrations no longer remain symmetrical about the direction of propagation but are confined to single plane as
shown in the fig.
The phenomenon due to the which the
vibrations of light are restricted in a particular
plane is called the polarisation of light and
such a light as plane polarisation light.
Since according to the electromagnetic
theory of light, the electric vector acts as light
vector, and the plane polarised light may be defined as the light in which the electric
vector vibrates along a fixed line in a plane perpendicular to the direction of
propagation of light.
The plane in which the vibrations of polarized light take place is called the plane of
vibrations.
Then plane perpendicular to the plane of polarization.
The crystal acts as the polariser. It may be pointed out that the naked eye cannot make distinction between unpolarised light and
the plane polarised light. A crystal used to make such distinction is called analyzer. If the light is plane polarised, then on the
rotating the analyzer , the intensity of the light will change.
8. Define polarizing angle for polarization by reflection.
Ans. Polarization angle is the angle of incidence at which the reflected light is completely plane polarized.
9. What are Fraunhoffer's lines ? Discuss them.
Ans. Fraunhofer’s lines are certain dark lines seen in the otherwise continuous spectrum of the sun. The presence of dark
lines in solar spectrum was explained by fraunhofer on the basis of kirchoff’s law, according to which a substance when
cold absorbs the same wavelengths selectively that it would emit while hot.
10. State any use of Doppler's effect in light origin.
Ans. Some important applications of doppler’s effect in light are in
(i)Measuring the speed of star and speed of galaxies,
(ii) Measuring speed of rotation of sun, which is about 2km/s about its own axis.
(iii) measurement of plasma temperatures in thermo-nuclear reactions
(iv) Estimation of velocity of aeroplanes, rockets and submarines etc.
(v) Estimation of velocity of satellites, etc
11. What do you mean by polarization of light ? How is polarized and unpolarized light represented ? How will you
prove that list is transverse wave in nature?
Ans Same as 8th
12. State two applications of Doppler effect in light.
Ans Same as 11.
13. State and prove Brewster's law of polarization.
Ans. Brewster Law
Malus experimentally found that light gets polarised to some extent whenever it is reflected by a transparent material. Brewster
later found that if angle of incidence is varied the extent to which polarisation occurs
also changes. At one particular angle of incidence ip, the reflected ray is
completely polarised. This angle is known as angle of polarisation.
According to Brewster law, the tangent of angle of polarisation is always equal to the
refractive index of reflecting medium, tan ip = 
BOY+COY = 900.
BOY= 90- ip, COY = 90 –r
 90 – ip + 90-r = 900.
 ip+r =900.  r = 900-ip
Acc. To Snell’s law
sin i sin i p sin i p
 =   tan i p
sin r sin(90  i p ) cos i p
  tan i p
Thus, Brewster law can also be stated as that " if angle of incidence is equal to the polarising angle then reflected and refracted
ray are perpendicular to each other."
14. What are Polaroids ? State their uses.
Polaroids: polaroids are polarising material converted into thin large sheets by artificial means, which are capable of producing
plane polarised beam of large cross section.

Applications:

1. In sun glasses – Sun glasses fitted with polariods instead of coloured glasses are more efficient in protecting the eyes from
glare due to reflected light without obscuring details even in shadows.
2. Wind shield of automobiles : Wind screen fitted with polaroid as well as head lights of automobiles protect the eyes of the
drivers of the automobiles from the dazzling light of approaching vehicles. The transmission axes of the polaroids both in
the head lights as well as the wind screen are oriented say at 450 with the vertical.
3. In Window panes : For this purpose, two polaroid sheet are mounted one behind the other . On rotating one of the
polaroid sheet, the amount of light entering the room can be controlled.This is generally used in trainsor aeroplanes etc.
4. There dimensional motion pictures : To make stereoscopic motion pictures, two pictures of the same scene are taken at
slightly different angles. These two pictures are projected simultaneously on the screen but light in two pictures is
polarised at right angle to each other.The spectators view these pictures with the help of polaroid spectacles, to have
three dimensional effect.sss
15. Why cannot longitudinal waves be polarised?
Ans . Because vibrations are along the direction of propagation, therefore, intensity is not affected due to rotation of
the analyser (or slit)
16. State and prove Brewster's law of polarisation.
Ans Same as 14th
17. Explain the important uses of plane polarized light and polarids.
Ans. The plane polarized light is used for finding :
1. Concentration of sugar solution (using polarimeters)
2. The blood sugar or sugar level in the urine of diabetic patients.
3. All the uses of polarioids explain above
18. Write three difference between interference and differaction of light?
Ans. Same as 1st
19. State and prove Brewster's law of polarisation of light by reflection.
Ans. Same as 14th

REFLECTION
1.Does the size of a mirror affect the nature of the image ?
Ans. No, size of mirror does not effect the nature of the image except that a bigger mirror forms a brighter image
2. A concave mirror is held in water. What would be the change in focal length of the mirror ?
Ans. There would be no charge in focal length of the concave mirror held in water as f does not depend upon the
external medium in which mirror is held
3. A concave mirror of small aperture forms a sharper image. Why?
Ans. This is because a concave mirror of small aperture is free the defect of spherical aberration.
4. Why a convex mirror is used as driver's mirror ? What is its drawback ?
Ans. Because field of view is large, image is erect, diminished and is always formed closer to the eye of the observer (i.e
in between pole and focus).
5. Concave mirror is used as a make up mirror. Explain.
Ans. Concave mirrors are used as makeup mirror as they produce magnified, erect and virtual image when object lies in
between pole and focus.
6. Establish the relation between object distance, image distance and radius of curvature for a concave mirror.
Ans. Consider a concave mirror having principal axis, focus and center of
curvature PC F and C respectively. Let an object AB lying on the principal
axis at a distance u from the pole. A ray AP falls on the mirror at angle i at
point P and get reflected along the path PP' at the angle  r =  i. Another
ray AN falls on the mirror normally and retraces its path. A third ray AQ
going parallel to principal axis after reflection from mirror at point Q passes
through principal focus F and goes along QA’. The two reflected rays
actually meet at A' forming the real image A’B’ in between C & F.

From ray diagram APB and A'PB' are similar. Therefore,

A ' B ' PB '

 (i)
AB PB

Also  ACB and  A'CB' are similar

A ' B ' B ' C PC  PB '

  (ii)
AB BC PB  PC
 From (i) and (ii),
PB ' PC  PB '

PB PB  PC
using sign conventions
PB  u , PB '  v & PC   R
 R  v v

u  R u
uR  uv  uv  vR
uR  vR  2uv
Divide by uvR
1 1 2
 
v u R

 100   1   1 
P  dioptre   µ  1   –  
 f   R1   R2  
µb 1

µa sinC
1
a
µb 
sinC

Refraction of Light
1. Obtain an expression for the effective focal length of the combination of two lenses placed in
contact with each other.
Ans. Let two thin lenses of focal lengths f1 and f2 are placed in contact. The first lens forms i m a g e o f the object O.
Using lens formula,
1 1 1
  …(i)
v1 u f1
Now, the image I1 acts as virtual object for the second lens and forms its real image at 1. Therefore,
1 1 1
  …(ii)
v v1 f 2
Adding Eqns. (i) and (ii).
1 1 1 1
  
v u f1 f 2
1 1 1
  …(iii)
F f1 f 2
1 1 1
Where   and F is the equivalent focal length of the combination. The power of the combination is given by
v u F
P  P1  P2

2. By drawing a diagram, show how can a totally reflecting prism be used to

deviate a ray of light through 1800?
Ans. When a ray of light is incident normally on the hypotenuse AC of the totally reflecting
prism, it goes undeviated and meets the face AB at an angle 45° and suffers total internal
reflection at face AB. Again, the reflected ray suffers total internal reflection at face BC of the
prism and finally ray comes out of the face AC. Thus, the prism bends the ray through
1800 as shown in the fig. Such prism are used in prism binoculars.
3. What is principle of optical fibre? How is a light signal transmitted along it? Show it with the help
of a diagram.
Ans. It is an extremely thin r 106 
and long strand of quartz or high quality composite glass (  =1.57) and coated
with a thin layer of material having refractive index  = 1.52. Thus, each fibre consists of a core and cladding (coating).
A bundle of large number of optical fibres is called a light pipe.
When the light is incident on one end of the fibre at a small angle, the light passes inside, it suffers multiple total
internal reflections inside it and ultimately comes out of the other edge without any loss of intensity. The angle of
incident is always greater than the critical angle of the core material w.r.t. cladding. Even if the fibre is bent or curved
as shown in fig. the light can easily travel through along the fibre.

4. For what purpose is optical fibre used in optical communication? Briefly describe the construction of optical fibre.
Ans. Optical fibres are used in telecommunication for propagating signals from one place
to other as an optical fibre can transmit about 300 messages simultaneously without
any interference. For example, a thick cable consisting of bundles of optical fibres is
used for connecting the main telephone exchange with other sub-telephone exchanges.
Construction:

It is an extremely thin
 r 106 
and long strand of quartz or high quality composite glass (  =1.57) and coated with a
thin layer of material having refractive index  = 1.52. Thus, each fibre consists of a core and cladding (coating). A
bundle of large number of optical fibres is called a light pipe.
When the light is incident on one end of the fibre at a small angle, the light passes inside, it suffers multiple total
internal reflections inside it and ultimately comes out of the other edge without any loss of intensity. The angle of
incident is always greater than the critical angle of the core material w.r.t. cladding. Even if the fibre is bent or curved
as shown in fig. the light can easily travel through along the fibre.
5. What is meaning of power of lens? What is its SI unit?
Ans. Power of a lens defined as the ability of the lens to converge a beam of light falling on the lens.
It is measured as the reciprocal of focal length of the lens.

i.e. P = 1/f.

According to lens maker’s formula

1  1   1 
    µ  1   –  
 f   R1   R2  

 1   1 
P   µ  1   –  
 R1   R2  

For a converging lens, power is taken as positive and for diverging lens, power is taken as negative.

The S.I unit of power is dioptre (D)

  1  1
When f =1m, P    =   =1dioptre
 f  1

Hence one dioptre is the power of a lens of focal length one metre.

 100 
When f is in cm, P  dioptre
 f 

6. Why dimand is brilliant ? Explain

Ans. Brilliance of diamonds:
A diamond is a brilliant gem because its refractive index is very high (2.42)
and its critical angle is, therefore, correspondingly small (24.4°). Very little of the light that enters the uppersurface of a
cut diamond passes through it; most of the light suffers many total internal reflections and finally emerges from the
top of the diamond.
7. What is total internal reflection, state the necessary conditions for it ? Find a relation between refractive index
and critical angle
Ans. To understand the phenomenon of total internal reflection , suppose an interface XY separates a rarer medium (a)
i.e. air from a denser medium (b) say water.
O is a point object in the denser medium . A ray of light starting from O and incident normally along OA and XY passes
straight along AB. Another ray incident along OA1 derivates away from normal and is refracted along A1B1. Clearly
angle of refraction is greater than the angle of incidence and it increases with increase in the angle of incidence. For
particular value of i = C the critical angle , the incident ray OA2 is refracted at r = 900 and goes grazingly along the
interface along A2B2 when i>C as for the incident ray
OA3, the ray goes along A3B3 as if as it is reflected from interface XY. This phenomenon is called Total internal
Reflection.
Total internal reflection may be defined as the phenomenon of reflection of light into a denser medium from an
interface of this denser medium and rarer medium.
Two essentials conditions for total internal reflection are
(i) Light should travel from a denser medium to a rarer medium.
(ii) Angle of incidence in denser medium should be greater than the critical angle for the pair of media in contact.
Critical Angle: Critical angle for a pair of media in contact be defined as the angle of incidence in the denser medium
corresponding to which angle of refraction in the rarer medium is 90 0. It is represented by C and its value depends on
the nature of media in contact.
Therefore when a ray of light traveling from an optically denser medium to an optically rarer medium is incident at an
angle greater than the critical angle for the pair of media in contact, the ray totally gets reflected back into denser
medium.
Relation between Refractive index and Critical angle
When i =C, r =900.
Applying Snell’s law at A2
µb sinC = µb sin 900 = µb x 1
µb 1 1
  a µb 
µa sinC sinC
As µ depends on wave length, therefore critical angle for the same pair of media in contact will be different for
different colors. The following table of µ and C is for  = 56000 A.
8. Write the conditions for total internal reflection to take place.
Ans. Two essentials conditions for total internal reflection are
(i) light should travel from a denser medium to a rarer medium.
(ii) Angle of incidence in denser medium should be greater than the critical angle for he pair of media in
contact.
 1
9. Prove the relation a b 
a b

Ans. PRINCIPLE OF REVERSIBILITY OF LIGHT

This principle states that if a ray of light, after suffering a number of reflections and/or refractions, finally Falls normally
on a mirror then its path is reversed.
Fig. shows a ray of light AB after refraction it the boundary XY separating the two media, falls normally on the plane
mirror M and gets reflected back and retraces its path.
Using Snell's law
sin i
For incident ray : 1 2  …(i)
sin r
sin i
For reflected ray: 2 1  …(ii)
sin r
Multiplying eqns (i) By (ii)
1
2 2 1  1
1
2
1  1 …(iii)
1
Hence, refractive index of the second medium w.r.t. first medium is equai to reciprocal of the refractive index of the
first medium w.r.t second medium.
If refractive index of glass w.r.t. air is 3/2, then refractive index of air w.r.t. glass is 2/3. /
8. How will you explain twinkling of stars ?
Ans. Light coming from a star reaches the observer’s eye after refraction through various layers of atmosphere. Since
refractive index of the atmosphere changes condinuously due to fluctuations in the atmospheric temperature and
density, etc., and hence light appear shimmering and, therefore, the apparent posotion of the star appears to be
fluctuating giving the effect of twinkling of stars.
It may be noted that since the planests are nearer to us, the light received from them is much greater.
Therefore, minor variation of intensity caused by the above effect is not noticeable. Thus, planets do not twinkle.
9. State generalized Snell's law of refraction through multiple parallel media. Prove the relation : a c a b b c
Ans. General Statement of Snell's Law
Suppose the speed of light in medium-1 is v2 and that in medium-2 is v1. Thus, the corresponding refractive indices 1
and  2 is
c c
1  and 2 
v1 v2
Or 1v1  2 1
2 v1 1
Or   2 (By definition) …(1)
1 v2
 
The relative refractive index of medium-2 with respect to medium-1 (i.e.. 1 2 )equal to the ratio  2  of the absolute
 1 
refractive indices 1and 2 of the two media, I and 2.
sin i  2

sin r 1
Or 1 sin i  2 sin r …(2)
The product of the refractive index and the sine of the angle made by the ray with the
normal at the point of incidence is constant for a given ray in both the media. This is
the general statement of Snell's law.
To Prove : a c a b b c
Let a compound slab consists of transparent media b and c and is placed in medium a
(say, air). The path of rays suffering refractions at various boundaries is shown in fig.
 sin i
Using Snell's law at the boundary separating the media a and b : a
b 
sin r1
sin r1
b and c : b
c 
sin r2
sin r2
c and a : c
a 
sin i
Multiplying theser equations,
a
b b c c a  1
1
a
b b c  c  a c
a
10. When does Snell's law in refraction fail ?
Ans. for the normal incidence of light on a refractive surface r=0
Sini
According to snell's law µ
sin r
i.e, denominator becomes zero which is a indeterminate form
c
11. Explain the phenomenon of refraction at a plane surface separating two transparent media and show that  
v
where letters have their usual meanings.
Ans. TO BE TYPED
12. The sun appears before the sun rise and after sun set for few minutes, way ?
Ans.Advance Sunrise and Sunset: The Sun is visible before actual sunrise and after actual sunset because of the
atmospheric refraction. It occurs because as we go higher up from the Earth,
the density and the refractive index of the air layers decrease. The rays of light
from the Sun keep on bending towards the normal. When the Sun S is below
the horizon HH', it appears to be at 5' [Fig.].
The angle α through which the Sun or any other celestial body is apparently
raised is called atmospheric refraction. When on the horizon, α =0.5° and it
*
corresponds to a time of about 2 minutes . Thus, the Sun appears to rise early
and to set late (for the same reason) by about 2 minutes. Thus, the day becomes longer by about 4 minutes.

13. What is total internal reflection of light ? What are essential conditions of it ? Explain the formation of mirage
using this phenomena.
Ans. Same as Q 5
MIRAGE:
The sighting of inverted images on hot still summer days is called mirage as it gives an illusion of water due to inverted
images of trees, etc., especially in deserts.
The phenomenon is on account of the combined effect of:
(i) successive refractions at various layers of air having different
values of µ and
(ii) total internal reflection.
As is shown in the Fig., the ray of light from the top A of an object
progressively bends away from the normal till it reaches point B
where the angle of incidence is greater than the
corresponding critical angle. At this stage, the ray is totally reflected
upwards and appears to come from point A' giving rise to an
imaginary image OA 'of the object.
14.. What is total internal reflection of light ? What are conditions for total internal reflection of light ? Derive
relation between refractive index and critical angle
Ans. Same as Q .5.
15. What is total internal reflection ? With the help of diagram write conditions for critical angle.
Ans. Same as Q 5
16. Write the condition for total internal relfection to take place.
Ans. Same as Q 5
17. The sun is seen a lillte before it rises and for a short while after it sets. Explain, why?
Ans. Same as 12th
18. What are optical fibres? Give their one use.
Ans. Same as 3rd .
Applications of optical fibres.
1. A bundle of optical fibres is called light pipe. This pipe can transmit an image. Since the pipe is flexible , it can be
twisted in any desired manner. Hence it is used in medical and optical examinations of even the inaccessible parts of
an equipment or of human body, e.g. in endoscopy.
2. Optical fibres are used in transmission and reception of electric signals by converting them first into light signals.
DISPERSION OF LIGHT
1."Why is the sun red in the morning ?
Ans. In morning and in the evening , the sun rays have to cover more distance through air AB or BC than at the noon
time. Therefore, blue dispersesfrom the air more than red
1
Since dispersion  4

For blue  is least and dispersion is maximum.
2. What are Fraunhoffer's lines ? State their importance. Explain their origin.
Ans. Fraunhofer’s lines are certain dark lines seen in the otherwise continuous spectrum of the sun. The presence of
dark lines in solar spectrum was explained by fraunhofer on the basis of kirchoff’s law, according to which a
substance when cold absorbs the same wavelengths selectively that it would emit while hot. The photosphere
emits continuous radiations of all possible wavelengths. When these radiations emitted by the photosphere pass
through the relatively cooler chromospheres, the various elements present in the chromospheres absorb their
characteristic wavelengths. Hence, dark lines are seen in the spectrum of the sun.
3. Why are danger signals Red in colour ? Give reason.
Ans. As r is largest in the visible region, therefore, red colour is least scattered. Hence it can be seen from large
distances. That is why dangers signals are red in colour.
4. What is spectrum ? State the necessary conditions to produce a pure spectrum.
Ans. A spectrum in which is no overlapping of carious colours and each colour is seen distinctly is called pure
spectrum Conditions for obtaining pure spectrum are explained below :
(i) The source of light should be narrow or fine slit S. A broad source is equivalent to large number of narrow sources
placed side by side and the result will be overlapping of colours in the resulting spectrum.
(ii) The incident beam should be rendered parallel by using achromatic coverging lens L 1, the slit S being in the focal
plane of the lens.
(iii) The prism should be placed in the minimum deviation position so that each colour suffers minimum deviation and
chances of overlapping of colours are very small. Therefore, the spectrum becomes distinctly visible.
(iv) The achromatic converging lens L2 should be used to focus different colours at different points on the screen or
cross wire of the spectrometer.
5. What are Fraunhoffer's lines ? How are they produced ?
Ans. Same as Q. no. 3
6. What is a stellar spectra ? How is it useful in identifying the elements present in the stellar atmosphere ?
Ans. Same as 2nd
7. Why is the colour of sky blue ? Explain.
Ans. Blue colour of the can be explained due to Rayleigh scattering.The amount of scattering is inversely
proportional to the forth power of the wavelength. When light from the sun travels earth’s atmosphere, it gets
scattered by large number of gaseous molecules. The blue light of shorter wavelength is scattered more than the light
of larger wavelength.Due to this blue colour predominates and the sky appears blue.
Since moon has no atmosphere , so there will be no scattering on moon , hence the sky will appear black on the moon.
8. Derive the relation for refractive index of the material of prism when the prism is placed in minimum
deviation position.
Ans. Derivation of prism formula : from 4 we find that angle of deviation depends upon angle of prism, angle of incidence and
also on nature of material of the prism. Fig 6(d) 3 shows the variation of angle of deviation ( ) with angle of incidence (i). when I
is increased ,  decreases, reaches a minimum and increases again .For one value of  ,
there are two angle of incidence i1 and i2. However , at minimum deviation  = m , i1 =i2
i.e.
The incident ray and the emergent ray are symmetrical with respect to the refracting
faces. The refracted ray in the prism , in that case will be parallel to the base.
Instead of referring to the graph , we can obtain the same result
mathematically :
From 4,    i1  i2   A

 i   i   A
2 2
 1 2

  i   i  2 i i
2 2
1 2 12 A

  i  i  2 ii  A
2
1 2 12

 be the minimum , when whole square on R.H.S> is minimum = 0 i.e.

 
2
i1  i2 0 or i1  i2  0

r i1  i2 or i1 =i2.
Thus in minimum deviation position
i1 =i2 =I, say
As i1 =i2, therefore r1 =r2 =r say
From 3 r+r = A, r = A/2.
From 4 m  i  i  A
m
Or A   m  2i or I = A
2
If µ is refractive index of the material of the prism, then according to Snell’s law
sin i

sin r
sin( A   m )
 2
sin A
2
This relation is called prism formula. It is used for accurate determination of refractive index of a transparent medium.
Q. Prove that δ= (μ-1)A, when the monochromatic light passes through prism.
Ans. REFRACTION THROUGH A PRISM

A ray of light suffers two refractions on passing through a prism and hence
deviates through a certain angle from its original path.

Calculation of angle of deviation In Fig., ABC is principal section of prism with

angle of prism = A

A ray of light KL is incident on the face AB of prism at i1 . It is refracted along

LM at r1 bending towards the normal N1O. The refracted ray is incident at r2
on face AC of the prism. It

bends away from normal N2O and emerges along MN at i2 . In passing through the prism, ray KL suffers two refractions and has
turned through an QPN   , which is the angle of deviation.
At the face AB, the angle of incidence is i1 and angle of refraction is r1. At the second face AC, the angle of incidence is r2 and angle
of refraction is i2.

So the deviation δ can be given as

  1 2
Also i1  1  r1 & i2  1  r2
 1  i1  r1 & 2  i2  r2
   (i1  r1 )  (i2  r2 )
   (i1  i2 )  (r1  r2 )    (*)
In ALM
A  1  2  3  4  1800      (1)
Also 1  3  r1  900 & 2  4  r2  900
 1  2  3  4  r1  r2  1800    (2)
From (1) & (2)
1  2  3  4  A  1  2  3  4  r1  r2
A  r1  r2 put in (*)
  (i1  i2 )  A
i
As    i1   r1 & i2   r2
r
  (  r1   r2 )  A   (r1  r2 )  A   A  A  (   1) A
9. What is Absorption spectrum ? Explain its kinds.
Ans. When white light is passed through a substance (solid, liquid or gas), the substance absorbs certain colours or
wavelengths giving rise to absorbtion spectrum. It is of three types (i) line absorption (ii) band absorbtion (ii)
continuous absorbtion spectrum. The line absorbtion spectrum is discussed below :
When a parallel beam of white light from an arc lamp is allowed to pass through sodium vapour lamp at relatively
low temperature. It will absorb its two characteristics D1 and D2 lines resulting in line absorption spectrum in the
yellow region of the spectrum. The line absorption spectrum can be explained on the basis of kirchoff’s law, According
to which e/ e= constant, i.e. a substance when cold (relative to the source) will absorb the same wavelengths
preferentially that it would emit while hot. The emission spectrum of sodium consists of two lines having wavelengths
5890 Ao (D1-line) and 5896 Ao (D2-line). Therefore, absorption spectrum of sodium consists of two dark lines (D1 and D2
lines) in the otherwise continuous spectrum of the arc lamp.
10. Why does the rising sun appear reddish ? Explain.
Ans. Same as Q no. 1
11. What is dispersion of light ? Explain it with a ray diagram. Also describe the cause of dispersion of light.
Ans. Dispersion of light is the phenomenon of spliting of a beam of white light into constiuents colours on passing
through a prism. In case of white incident light the colours are in order of VIBGYOR . Violet deviates maximum and red
the maximum.
Cause of dispersion of light :It is the wavelength of light and it is the refractive index of meterial of the prism for
particular wavelength , then according to Canchy’s formula.
b c
  a  2  4 , where a,b, c are constants.
 
When angle of refraction is small , deviation
  = ( - 1)
Since  violet <  red
 violet >  red
Hence  violet >  red
i.e. maximum deviation is for violet colour. Hence violet is at lower end and red at the uppar end of the spectra.
4. State the reason for the following observations recorded from the surface of moon.
(i) sky appears dark and (ii) rainbow is never formed.
Ans. (i) As there is no atmosphere on the surface of moon. So there will be no scattering of light .Therefore the sky will
appear to be dark.
(ii) For rainbow to get formed there should be suspended water droplets in the atmosphere so that dispersion and
refraction can take place as there is no atmosphere on moon that’s why rainbow is never formed on moon.
7. Why does the sun look almost reddish at sunrise & sunset ?
Ans. In morning and in the evening , the sun rays have to cover more distance through air AB or BC than at the noon
time. Therefore, blue dispersesfrom the air more than red
1
Since dispersion  4

For blue  is least and dispersion is maximum.

OPTICAL INSTRUMENTS
1.Define resolving power of a telescope. On what factors does it depend?
Ans. Resolving power of a telescope is defined as the reciprocal of smallest angular separation between two distant
objects whose images are separated in the telescope. This is given by
1 a
Resolving power = 
d 1.22
Where  is the wavelength of light, a is the diameter of the telescope objective and d =angle subtended by
the point object at the objective, To get a high resolving power, a telescope with large aperture objective has to be
used.
Thus resolving power depends upon
(i) wavelength of light (ii) aperture of the telescope.
2. Define resolving power of a compound microscope and on what factors does it depend ?
Ans. Resolving power of a microscope is the reciprocal of minimum distance (d) of separation between to close
object that they appear just separated when see through the microscope.

Minimum distance of separation between two objects d 
2sin 
1 2  sin 
Resolving power = 
d 
where  is the refractive index of the medium inserted between object & objective lens.

3.What do you mean by light gathering power of a Telescope ?

Ans. The Light-gathering power of a telescope depends upon area of the objective which collects the light ans focuses it
to form the image.
 D2
Light –gathering power  Area of the objective   D 2 A telescope with large light-gathering power
4
produces a bright image. For this purpose, the diameter (or aperture) of the objective should be large.
4. List some advantages of a reflecting telescope.
Ans. (i) The image formed are free from spherical (Formation of enlarged, blurred image of point objects) and
chromatic (formation of coloured image of white objects) aberrations
(ii) Due to large light-gathering power, even faint stars can be seen with this telescope
(iii) Resolving power of these telescope is also large, therefore minute details of distant stars can also be studied.
5. State the principle of optical tube.
Ans. It is an extremely thin  r 106 m  and long strand of quartz or high quality composite glass    1.57  and
coated with a thin layer of material having refractive index   1.52 . Thus, each fibre consists of a core and cladding
(coating). A bundle of large number of optical fibres is called light pipe
When the light is incident on one end of the fibre at a small angle, the light passes inside, it suffers multiple total
internal reflection reflections inside it and ultimately comes out of the other edge without any loss of intensity the
angle of incident is always greater than the critical angle of the core material w.r.t cladding. Even if the fibre is bent or
curved, the light can easily travel through along the fibre
6. On what factors does the resolving power of a compound microscope depend ?
Ans. Compound microscope is used to see extremely small objects and consists of two achromatic converging lenses of
short focal lengths. The lens (of small aperture) facing the object is called objective and the lens (of large aperture)
towards the eye is called eye-lens or ocular. The distance between objective and eye lens can be adjusted so as to form
a distinct image. The compound microscope was invented by Galileo is 1610.
7. Write two merits of reflecting type telescope over refracting type telescope.
Ans .
Refracting type Telescope Reflecting type Telescope
1. The objective is an achromatic converging lens. 1. The objective is a concave or parabolic mirror.
2. It suffers from spherical aberration, therefore the 2. It is almost free from spherical aberration,
image formed is blurred in nature therefore, image formed is sharp and bright
8. What is Hypermetropia ? What are its causes and how it can be corrected ? Explain with diagrams.
Ans. A person suffering with this defect can see the far object distinctly, but cannot
see the near objects. You must have seen some people holding a book away from
their eyes to read the matter. They do so because they are long-sighted.
For a normal eye, the least distance of distinct vision (or near point) is about 25 cm
But for a long-sighted person, the least distance of distinct vision is greater than 25
cm. the rays from the near pont N are brought to a focus behind the retina.
Causes of long-sightedness
(a)Either of the eyeball becomes smaller (i.e,the distance of retina from the eye lens
decreases)
(b) The focal length of the crystalline lens is large (i.e,not reduces sufficiently to
accommodate near point).

Remedy of Long Sighttedness: sgadhga

Q. What is Myopia? What are its causes & how it can be corrected? Explain with
diagram.
Ans. Short-sightedness or Myopia
A person suffering with this defect can see the near object but cannot see far object
distinctly. A myopic eye tries to focus more distant objects by partially closing
the eye-lids and drawing back the lens, while the near objects are focussed by the
power of accommodation of eye. You must have seen some people holding the print
very near to their eyes when they want to read a news paper. They do so because
they are short-sighted.

In a myopic eye, the rays from a very distant object are brought to a focus in front of
the retina Fig., The eye's far point is not at infinity but nearer than this, say P for which
the image is formed at retina Fig.
Causes of the short-sightedness:
This defect is due to either of the two reasons:

(i) The elongation of the eyeball, (i.e., the distance of retina from the eye-lens increases)
(ii) The focal length of the ciystalline lens is small (not increases sufficiently to accommodate infinity).

Remedy of short-sightedness or myopia : In order to see a very distant object clearly, one should use such a lens which
will form the image of very distant object at P which is the far point of the defective eye. The defective eye will form
the image of this object at retina. This is achieved by a concave lens which diverges the rays entering the eye so that
they appear to be coming from the eye's own far point P as shown in fig. Clearly, the focal length of this divergent lens
will be equal to the distance of the point P from the eye lens (i.e., eye's own far point).

2. What is simple microscope? Find an expression for its magnification.

Ans. Simple Microscope:
Object is placed between convex lens and principal focus an erect, virtual and magnified image is formed on the same
side of the object. In the figure object AB which when viewed by an unaided eye cannot be seen distinctly. A convex
lens is then interposed between the eye and the object so that the distance 'a' of the object from the lens is less than
the focal length of the lens. A virtual, erect and magnified image A'B' will be produced. By adjusting the distance of
object image is formed at least distance of distinct vision
Magnifying Power :
It is the ratio of angle subtended by the image at the eye to the angle subtended by the object at the eye when
both are placed at least distance of distinct vision.
AB
 tan CB CB ' d
Magnifying power         (1)
 tan A1 B CB u
CB '
Since the virtual image is formed at least distance of
distinct vision, therefore, v = -d.

Using Lens Formula,

1 1 1
 
v u f
1 1 1
  
d u f
Multiplying both sides by D, we get,
d d
1  
u f
d d
 1     (2)
u f
From (1) and (2),
D
M 1
f