At what angle does total internal reflection occur?

This question is to do with the refraction that occurs when a light ray hits a boundary between two media of different refractive index. We know that the relationship between the angle of incidence and angle of refraction is given by Snell's law. Using this, and the fact that total internal refraction occurs at an angle of 90 degrees to the normal of the boundary, we can calculate an angle of incidence that leads to total internal refraction for any material.

AS
Answered by Alex S. Physics tutor

4841 Views

See similar Physics GCSE tutors

Related Physics GCSE answers

All answers ▸

State Newton's 2nd Law, and use this explain the vertical motion of a parachutist in the descent from her plane to Earth.


State one advantage and one disadvantage of using a CT scanner, compared with ultrasound scanning, for forming images of the inside of the human body. (2 Marks)


How to use fleming's left hand rule.


A car's speed changes from 10m\s to 40m\s in 10 seconds. What is its acceleration?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning