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  • Optical Density and Light Speed

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    Leon Mathaios
    50 vizualizări2 pagini
    The document discusses how the speed of light is affected by the optical density of the medium it passes through. It explains that light travels slower in denser materials because the electromagnetic energy is absorbed and reemitted by the atoms as it passes from one to the next. The index of refraction is used to indicate an material's optical density, with higher values corresponding to denser materials that light travels slower through. Examples are given showing how the index increases from air to glass to diamond, correlating with decreasing light speed.

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    Optical Density and Light Speed

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    The document discusses how the speed of light is affected by the optical density of the medium it passes through. It explains that light travels slower in denser materials because the electromagnetic energy is absorbed and reemitted by the atoms as it passes from one to the next. The index of refraction is used to indicate an material's optical density, with higher values corresponding to denser materials that light travels slower through. Examples are given showing how the index increases from air to glass to diamond, correlating with decreasing light speed.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Descărcați ca PDF, TXT sau citiți online pe Scribd
    Indicator pentru conținut neadecvat
    50 vizualizări2 pagini

    Optical Density and Light Speed

    Încărcat de

    Leon Mathaios
    The document discusses how the speed of light is affected by the optical density of the medium it passes through. It explains that light travels slower in denser materials because the electromagnetic energy is absorbed and reemitted by the atoms as it passes from one to the next. The index of refraction is used to indicate an material's optical density, with higher values corresponding to denser materials that light travels slower through. Examples are given showing how the index increases from air to glass to diamond, correlating with decreasing light speed.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Descărcați ca PDF, TXT sau citiți online pe Scribd
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    3/9/2017 OpticalDensityandLightSpeed

    OpticalDensityandLightSpeed
    BoundaryBehavior
    RefractionandSight
    TheCauseofRefraction
    OpticalDensityandLightSpeed
    TheDirectionofBending
    IfIWereanArcherFish

    Refractionisthebendingofthepathofalightwaveasitpassesfromonematerialtoanothermaterial.
    Therefractionoccursattheboundaryandiscausedbyachangeinthespeedofthelightwaveupon
    crossingtheboundary.Thetendencyofarayoflighttobendonedirectionoranotherisdependent
    uponwhetherthelightwavespeedsuporslowsdownuponcrossingtheboundary.Becauseamajor
    focusofourstudywillbeuponthedirectionofbending,itwillbeimportanttounderstandthefactors
    thataffectthespeedatwhichalightwaveistransportedthroughamedium.


    LightPropagationThroughaMedium
    Themechanismbywhichalightwaveistransportedthroughamediumoccursinamannerthatis
    similartothewaythatanyotherwaveistransportedbyparticletoparticleinteraction.InUnit10of
    ThePhysicsClassroomTutorial,theparticletoparticleinteractionmechanismbywhichamechanical
    wavetransportsenergywasdiscussedindetail.InUnit12ofThePhysicsClassroomTutorial,the
    mechanismofenergytransportbyanelectromagneticwavewasbrieflydiscussed.Herewewilllookat
    thismethodinmoredetail.
    Anelectromagneticwave(i.e.,alightwave)isproducedbyavibratingelectriccharge.Asthewave
    movesthroughthevacuumofemptyspace,ittravelsataspeedofc(3x108m/s).Thisvalueis
    thespeedoflightinavacuum.Whenthewaveimpingesuponaparticleofmatter,theenergyis
    absorbedandsetselectronswithintheatomsintovibrationalmotion.Ifthefrequencyofthe
    electromagneticwavedoesnotmatchtheresonantfrequencyofvibrationoftheelectron,thenthe
    energyisreemittedintheformofanelectromagneticwave.Thisnewelectromagneticwavehasthe
    samefrequencyastheoriginalwaveandittoowilltravelataspeedofcthroughtheemptyspace
    betweenatoms.Thenewlyemittedlightwavecontinuestomovethroughtheinteratomicspaceuntilit
    impingesuponaneighboringparticle.Theenergyisabsorbedbythisnewparticleandsetstheelectrons
    ofitsatomsintovibrationmotion.Andoncemore,ifthereisnomatchbetweenthefrequencyofthe
    electromagneticwaveandtheresonantfrequencyoftheelectron,theenergyisreemittedintheformof
    anewelectromagneticwave.Thecycleofabsorptionandreemissioncontinuesastheenergyis
    transportedfromparticletoparticlethroughthebulkofamedium.Everyphoton(bundleof
    electromagneticenergy)travelsbetweentheinteratomicvoidataspeedofcyettimedelayinvolvedin
    theprocessofbeingabsorbedandreemittedbytheatomsofthemateriallowersthenetspeedof
    transportfromoneendofthemediumtotheother.Subsequently,thenetspeedofanelectromagnetic
    waveinanymediumissomewhatlessthanitsspeedinavacuumc(3x108m/s).



    OpticalDensityandtheIndexofRefraction
    Likeanywave,thespeedofalightwaveisdependentuponthepropertiesofthemedium.Inthecase
    ofanelectromagneticwave,thespeedofthewavedependsupontheopticaldensityofthatmaterial.
    Theopticaldensityofamediumisnotthesameasitsphysicaldensity.Thephysicaldensityofa 1/2
    http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/refrn/Lesson1/OpticalDensityandLightSpeed
    materialreferstothemass/volumeratio.Theopticaldensityofamaterialrelatestothesluggish
    3/9/2017 OpticalDensityandLightSpeed

    tendencyoftheatomsofamaterialtomaintaintheabsorbedenergyofanelectromagneticwaveinthe
    formofvibratingelectronsbeforereemittingitasanewelectromagneticdisturbance.Themoreoptically
    densethatamaterialis,theslowerthatawavewillmovethroughthematerial.
    Oneindicatoroftheopticaldensityofamaterialistheindexofrefractionvalueofthe
    material.Indexofrefractionvalues(representedbythesymboln)arenumericalindexvaluesthatare
    expressedrelativetothespeedoflightinavacuum.Theindexofrefractionvalueofamaterialisa
    numberthatindicatesthenumberoftimesslowerthatalightwavewouldbeinthatmaterialthanitis
    inavacuum.Avacuumisgivenannvalueof1.0000.Thenvaluesofothermaterialsarefoundfrom
    thefollowingequation:


    Thetablebelowlistsindexofrefractionvaluesforavarietyofmedium.Thematerialslistedatthetopof
    thetablearethosethroughwhichlighttravelsfastestthesearetheleastopticallydensematerials.The
    materialslistedatthebottomofthetablearethosethroughwhichlighttravelsslowestthesearethe
    mostopticallydensematerials.Soastheindexofrefractionvalueincreases,theoptical
    densityincreases,andthespeedoflightinthatmaterialdecreases.
    Material IndexofRefraction
    Vacuum 1.0000 <lowestopticaldensity
    Air 1.0003
    Ice 1.31
    Water 1.333
    EthylAlcohol 1.36
    Plexiglas 1.51
    CrownGlass 1.52
    LightFlintGlass 1.58
    DenseFlintGlass 1.66
    Zircon 1.923
    Diamond 2.417
    Rutile 2.907
    Galliumphosphide 3.50 <highestopticaldensity

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