Question

What is incident ray in terms of refraction?
A) The ray which strikes the surface of separation of two optical media
B) The ray which strikes the surface of second media
C) The ray which strikes the surface of first media
D) None

Answer 1

Hint: To solve the given question we will know what is the definition of incident ray and then compare it with given options to get the correct answer.

Complete answer:
Light is an energy that enables us to see things. Light starts from a source and bounces off objects which are received by our eyes and our brain processes this signal, which eventually enables us to see the objects.
Incident ray is defined as a ray that strikes the surface separating the two optical media.
This is shown in the following fig.

The angle which the incident ray makes with the normal (perpendicular to the surface) at the point of incidence is called angle of incidence The angle which the reflected ray makes with the normal (perpendicular to the surface) at the point of incidence is called the angle of reflection.
Moreover, the incident ray, reflected ray and a line perpendicular to the surface at the contact point lie in the same plane. We can calculate the amount of refraction using Snell’s law, which shows how the incident light is related to refracted light.

Note:
One must know the difference between incident ray and reflected ray. The ray which hits a surface is the incident ray whereas the ray which is thrown or bounced back from a non-absorbing surface is known as reflected ray. Refracted ray is a ray which passes through the surface or bends.