INTRODUCTION

The nature of Light and Refractive Index:

The nature of light, one of the fundamental
constituents of the universe, has been a subject of
constant debate throughout the centuries. Several
groundbreaking theories explaining its nature have
been published over the years, and its journey
from simple particles to its current perception as
an electromagnetic phenomenon took centuries.
Sir Isaac Newton believed that white light was
colorless. Newton’s experiments with prisms,
however, convinced him that all colors already
existed in the light and that light consisted of
particles of different colors travelling with
different speeds through the prism.

Later, scientists Young and Fresnel showed that

colour is determined by light’s wavelength, not
particles of different sizes. Light changes speed as

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it moves from one
substance to other.
This change in speed
causes the light to
bend and enter the
new substance at a different angle. Each
wavelength of light that passes through a specific
substance behaves differently. This behavior is
determined by a property of the substance called
its INDEX OF REFRACTION or
REFRACTIVE INDEX
Refractive Index is a very important physical
quantity as it can be used for a variety of
purposes. It plays a pivotal role in the designing of
optical instruments. It determines the focusing
power of lenses, the dispersive power of prisms,
and generally the path of light through the system.
It is the increase in refractive index in the core
that guides the light in an optical fiber. Variant
refractive index can generate resonant cavity that
can enhance phase shift of output light. This is

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important for designing and fabricating a variety
of optoelectronic devices such as hologram and
lens.
Since refractive index is a fundamental physical
property of a substance, it is often used to identify
a particular substance, confirm its purity, or
measure its concentration. Most commonly, it is
used to measure the concentration of a solute in an
aqueous solution. It can also be used as a useful
tool to differentiate between different types of
gemstones, due to the unique chatoyance each
individual stone displays. A refractometer is the
instrument used to measure refractive index. For a
solution of sugar, the refractive index can be used
to determine the sugar content.

Prisms:
In optics, a prism is a transparent optical element
with a flat, polished surface that refracts light. At
least two of the flat surfaces in a prism must have

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an angle between them. Prisms can be made from
any material that is transparent to those
wavelengths of light for which they are designed.
Typical materials include glass, plastic, and
fluorite.
When white light is passed
through a prism, it results
in the splitting of white
light into its constituent
colours due to the different
speed each colour of light has in that substance.
Red being the fastest, comes out at the top
whereas violet, being the slowest, is at the bottom
of the spectrum. This phenomenon of splitting of
white light into its constituent spectrum of colors
is known as DISPERSON.
Dispersion of white light through an equilateral glass prism

As stated above, determining the refractive index

of a substance is of utmost importance. The

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Refractive index of a transparent medium can be
determined using a Hollow Prism.

Optical density:
Like any wave, the speed of a light wave is
dependent upon the properties of the medium. In
case of an electromagnetic waves, the speed of the
waves depends up on density of that material. The
optical density of a medium is not the same as its
physical density. The physical density of a
material the first two mass/volume ratio. The
optical density of a material relates to the sluggish
tendency of the atom of a material to maintain the
absorbed energy of an electromagnetic waves in
the form vibrating electrons before reemitting it as
a new electromagnetic disturbance. The more
optically dense that a material is, the slower than a
wave will move through the material.

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Gallium Phosphide, the compound with the highest value of optical
density (3.50)

One indicator of the optical density of a material

is the value of the REFRACTIVE INDEX of the
material. Refractive index values are numerical
index values that are expressed relative to the
speed of light in a vacuum. It indicates how much
faster or slower a light wave would be in that
materials than it is in a vacuum. A vacuum is
given an n value of 1.0000. The n values of other
materials are found from the following equation
3.00 ×10 8
nmaterial =
v material

FACTORS ON WHICH REFRACTIVE

INDEX DEPENDS ON:
Different liquids have different refractive indices.
The velocity of light through any material is
retarded by forces binding its atoms and

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molecules. Therefore, the degree to which a
particular beam of light is slowed depends both
upon the types of atoms present (the chemical
composition) and the nature of arrangement of
these atoms. Temperature of a liquid influences its
refractive index, but if measurements are made at
a normal range of room temperatures, this effect is
so small that it can be neglected.
The refractive indices also vary depending on the
type of electromagnetic radiations used. Different
electromagnetic radiations have different
wavelengths and hence different frequencies. The
reason the refractive indices change with the
frequency of light is because as you change the
frequency of light you are moving either towards
or away from the natural frequency of the
electrons and phase difference changes. Typically
you would expect the refractive index near
resonance to look like this:

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AIM

To analyze the change in Angle of Deviation

with different transparent liquids using a hollow
prism, and subsequently estimate the Refractive
Index of the liquid used.

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 APPARATUS USED

❖ Hollow Glass Prism

❖ Transparent fluids such as glycerine,

coconut oil and tap water.
❖ Drawing Board
❖ White Sheets of Paper
❖ Drawing pins or Board Pins
❖ Geometrical Instruments(Ruler, Protractor)
❖ Writing Instruments
❖ Graph Sheets

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PROCEDURE

a) A hollow prism is filled with Tap Water

and is secured tightly.
b)A sheet of paper is fixed to the drawing
board with the help of board pins.
c) The outline of the prism is traced onto the
sheet of paper (An equilateral prism has
been used here).
d)A point is marked on the incident side AB
and a normal is drawn through it.
e) A line making angle of 30º(Angle of

incidence)with the normal is drawn.

f) The hollow prism is placed within the
outline of the prism.
g)On the other side, two pins are fixed with a
distance of 4cm-6cm between them along
the path of the pins from the other side.
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 h)The points where the pins were placed is
marked on paper.
i) The two points are joined and extended

backwards to meet the incident ray. The

angle between the incident ray and the
emergent ray, ‘δ’ is called the Angle of
Deviation.
j) Angle ‘δ’ is measured using a protractor
and is noted down in the observation table.
k) Similarly the steps 5-11 are repeated for

different angles of incidence (35º, 40º,

45º...).
l) Similarly, all the above steps are repeated

for two more liquids Glycerine

m) All observations are recorded in an

observation table.

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 Sample Graph

12

10

Column 1
6
Column 2
Column 3
4

0
Row 1 Row 2 Row 3 Row 4

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OBSERVATION TABLE
ANGLE OF ANGLE OF
LIQUID
S.NO INCIDENCE DEVIATION
USED
(i) (δ)
20 33
Tap 25 31
1
Water 30 26
35 28
20 41
25 39
2 Glycerine
30 40
35 44

CALCULATIONS

Formula used to calculate refractive index

‘n’from minimum angle of deviation‘δ’:
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 n λ =sin sin ¿ ¿

Where ‘n’ is the Refractive index of the medium

for a given wavelength of incident light ‘λ’,
‘A’ is the Internal Angle of the prism,
‘D’ is the Angle of Minimum Deviation for a
given wavelength of incident light ‘λ’.

For an equilateral Prism, A=60º

n water=sin ⁡¿¿ =1.140

n glycerine =sin ⁡¿ ¿ =0.671

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RESULT

1. The Angle of Minimum Deviation

was found to be the highest in Glycerine,
followed by coconut oil and then tap
water.
2. The Refractive Indices determined
experimentally are:

nwater =1.140
nglycerine =0.671

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PRECAUTIONS

● Pins must be fixed vertically, and must lie

on the same line
● The angle of incidence should lie between
30 º and 60 º.
● Distance between the two pins must not
be less than 10 mm.

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SOURCES OF ERROR

● Measurement of the angle may be wrong

● Pin pricks may be thick.
● Pin pricks .ay not be placed with enough
distance between them
● Liquids might not be of ideal
concentration and purity.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. CBSE Class XII Physics Textbook
-NCERT
2. www.refractiveindex.info

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