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

4777 Views

See similar Physics GCSE tutors

Related Physics GCSE answers

All answers ▸

What is the importance of the resultant force in a free-fall question?


A kettle requires 2400 Coulombs of charge to pass through its heating element, with a resistance of 6 Ohms, in a time of 200 seconds in order to boil the water inside it. Calculate the current flowing and the power of the kettle.


How does conduction work in metals?


How can an object accelerate without changing speed?


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:

© 2025 by IXL Learning