ArshaVidyaMandir

Lecture Notes–2024-2025

Class: X Subject: Physics

Topic: Light-
Teacher:Ms. Laveena
Refraction

Light
Light is the form of energy, which enables us to interact with our surroundings in a most
effective way. Light causes the sensation of vision.

There are two major phenomena of light that takes place in the process of “seeing”. They are
“reflection” and “refraction”.

Refraction of light is the change in direction (bending of light rays) when it passes from
one optically transparent medium to another.

Terms used in refraction:

Refracted ray is the bent ray as a result of passing from one optical medium to another.

Normal is an imaginary line perpendicular to the interface of media where the refraction
occurs.

Angle of incidence is the angle between incident ray and the normal.

Angle of refraction is the angle between refracted ray and the normal.

Laws of Refraction

1
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

First law of refraction states that the incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal to the
interface all lie in the same plane.

Second law of refraction states that for two given media, the ratio sini / sinr = constant
where i is the angle of incidence and r is the angle of refraction.

Refractive index (n) of a medium is given by n= sini/ sinr

The greater the value of the refractive index of a medium, the greater is the “bending”
effect of light when it passes from air into that medium.

A material with a larger value of n is an optically denser medium.

In summary, light travelling from:

Optically denser medium to optically less dense (rarer) medium – Bend away from
normal

Optically less dense (rarer) medium to optically denser medium – Bend towards normal

However, if the light ray enters another medium perpendicularly to the boundary, there is
no deviation of the ray even when there is change in speed of light.

Another definition for refractive index:

2
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

Refractive index (n) of a medium is the ratio of the speed of light in vacuum (c) to the
speed of light in that medium (v). Hence, n can be calculated using:

n=c/v

This implies that the higher the refractive index of a medium, the slower will be the
speed of light through it. This means that a medium’s optical density increases as its
refractive index increases.

Consequence of refraction of light: Apparent Depth

A pool of water looks shallower than it really is. A straight object placed in water looks
bent at the surfaces.

Refractive Index & Wavelength of Light

For visible light, the refractive indices of most transparent medium will decrease with
increasing wavelength. Hence, this causes white light to split in its constituent colors
(rainbow) when it passes through a prism.

Refraction through Lens

Rules to be followed

i) Refraction of parallel ray:

A parallel ray converges at focus of a convex lens and diverges from the focus of a
concave lens.

3
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

Fig: Ray parallel to principal axis

ii) Refraction of ray passing through the Principal focus:

A ray passing through principal focus emerges parallel to the principal axis after refraction
from a convex lens.

Fig: Ray passing through focus

A ray passing through the principal focus emerges parallel to the principal axis after
diverging from a concave lens.

iii) Ray passing through the optical centre of lens:

4
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025
Ray passing through the optical centre of convex and concave lens emerges in same
direction without any deviation.

Fig: Ray passing through O

LENSES

Converging lens: A convex lens is known as a converging lens because parallel rays
converge at its focus.

Fig: Converging Lens

Diverging lens: A concave lens is known as a diverging lens because parallel rays appear
to diverge from the focus; after refraction.

5
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

Fig: Diverging Lens

Image Formation by Convex Lens

There are six possibilities of position of object in the case of convex lens:

Object at infinity

Object beyond centre of curvature, C

Object at centre of curvature, C

Object between centre of curvature, C and principal focus, F

Object at principal focus, F

Object between principal focus, F and optical centre, O

Object at infinity:
Convex lens converge parallel rays coming from objet at infinity and a highly diminished
- point sized, real and inverted image is formed at principal focus F2.

Fig: Object is at Infinity

Properties of Image: Image is highly diminished, real and inverted.

Object beyond centre of curvature, C1 or 2F1:

A diminished, real and inverted image is formed between principal focus, F2 and centre of
curvature, C2 at the opposite side when an object is placed beyond C1 of a convex lens.

6
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

Fig: Object is beyond 2F1

Properties of Image: Image is diminished, real and inverted.

Object at centre of curvature, C1 or 2F1:

A same sized, real and inverted image is formed at centre of curvature, C2 when object is
placed at centre of curvature, C1 of a convex lens.

Fig: Object at 2F1

Properties of Image: Image is same size as object, real and inverted.

Object between centre of curvature, C1 and principal focus, F1:

An enlarged, real and inverted image is formed beyond centre of curvature, C2 when an
object is placed between centre of curvature, C1 and principal focus, F1 of a convex lens.

Fig: Object between 2F1 and F1

Properties of Image: Image is enlarged, real and inverted.

Object at principal focus, F1:

An infinitely large, real and inverted image is formed at infinity when object is placed at
principal focus, F1 of a convex lens.

7
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

Fig: Object at F1

Properties of Image: Image is highly enlarged, real and inverted.

Between principal focus, F1 and optical centre, O:

A virtual, erect and enlarged image is formed at the same side of lens, when an object is
placed between principal focus, F1 and optical centre, O of a convex lens.

Fig: Object between F1 and O

Properties of Image: Image is enlarged, virtual and erect.

Image Formation by Concave Lens

There are only two possibilities of position of object in the case of a concave lens:

Object is at infinity

Object is between optical centre, O and infinity

Object is at infinity:
A highly diminished point sized, virtual and erect image is formed when object is at
infinity by a concave lens at principal focus F1.

8
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025
Fig: Object at Infinity

Properties of Image: Image is point sized, highly diminished, virtual and erect.

Object is between optical centre, O and infinity:

A diminished, virtual and erect image is formed between principal focus F1 and optical
centre, O; when object is placed between optical centre and infinity of a concave lens.

Fig: Object between Infinity and O

Properties of Image: Image is diminished, virtual and erect.

Sign convention for lens:

Sign convention for lens is similar to that of spherical mirror. Signs are taken left of the
optical centre as negative, right of the optical centre as positive, above of the principal axis
as positive and below of the principal axis as negative.

Fig: Sign Convention

The new sign convention is known as New Cartesian Sign Convention. In this sign is
taken negative towards left and taken as positive towards right at X-axis from origin.

9
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025
The sign is taken as positive (+) above the origin point at Y-axis; and below the origin
point as negative (-) at Y-axis.

Lens Formula and Magnification:

The relation between distance of object, distance of image and focal length for a lens is
called lens formula.

Where, v is the distance of image, u is the distance of object, and f is the focal length of
lens. Distance of object and image is measure from the optical centre of the lens. The sign
for distance is given as per convention. The lens formula is valid for all situations for
spherical lens. By knowing any of the two values the third value can be calculated.

Magnification:
The ratio of height of image and that of object or ratio of distance of image and distance of
object gives magnification. It is generally denoted by ‘m’.

The positive (+) sign of magnification shows that image is erect and virtual while a
negative (-) sign of magnification shows that image is real and inverted.

Power of lens:
A convex lens with short focal length converge the light rays with greater degree nearer to
principal focus and a concave lens with short focal length diverges the light rays with
greater degree nearer to principal focus.

The degree of divergence or convergence of ray of light by a lens is expressed in terms of

the power of lens. Degree of convergence and divergence depends upon the focal length of
a lens. The power of a lens is denoted by ‘P’. The power of a lens is reciprocal of the focal
length.

10
 ArshaVidyaMandir
Lecture Notes 2024-2025

The SI unit of Power of lens is dioptre and it is denoted by ‘D’.

Power of a lens is expressed in dioptre when the focal length is expressed in metre. Thus,
a lens having 1 metre of focal length has power equal to 1 dipotre.

Therefore, 1 D = 1 m−1

A convex lens has power in positive and a concave lens has power in negative.

*****

11