MGM MODEL SCHOOL

PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

NAME : SHIKHA SHYAM

CLASS : XII D
ROLL NO: 25

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 TOPIC:

TOTAL INTERNAL
REFLECTION

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 INDEX PAGE

SI NO: Contents Page

1 TITLE 2
2 CERTIFICATE PAGE 4
3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 5
4 AIM 6
5 INTRODUCTION 7
6 MATERIALS REQUIRED 14
7 PROCEDURE 15
8 RESULT 17
9 CONCLUSION 18
10 PRECAUTION 19
11 BIBLIOGRAPHY 20

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It gives immense pleasure in bringing out this report of the project

entitled ‘Total Internal Refraction’. I would like to thank our Principal
Dr. Pooja S, M.G.M. Model School, Thiruvananthapuram and the
Department of Physics for giving us the opportunity to complete this
project. I would also like to thank Mrs Mini. M and Mr Roy Thomas
for her unconditional support during the course of my project and also
for her valuable suggestions and ideas when I was in need of them. I
express my deep gratitude to all teachers for their creative suggestions
in emphasizing this work.
I owe it all to the almighty God for granting me the wisdom, health
and strength to undertake the project task and enabling me to its
completion.
Above all, I am grateful to our friends and classmates for their help.

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 AIM

To determine the refractive index p of glass using total internal

reflection.

INTRODUCTION

Total internal reflection is an optical phenomenon that happens when

a ray of light strikes a medium boundary at an angle larger than a
particular critical angle with respect to the normal to the surface. If
the refractive index is lower on the other side of the boundary and the
incident angle is greater than the critical angle, no light can pass
through and all of the light is reflected. The critical angle is the angle
of incidence above which the total internal reflection occurs.
When a light beam crosses a boundary between materials with
different kinds of refractive indices, the light beam will be partially
refracted at the boundary surface, and partially reflected. However, if
the angle of incidence is greater (i.e. the ray is closer to being parallel
to the boundary) than the critical angle - the angle of incidence at
which light is refracted such that it travels along the boundary - then
the light will stop crossing the boundary altogether and instead be
totally reflected back internally. This can only occur where light
travels from a medium with a higher [n1=higher refractive index] to
one with a lower refractive index [n2=lower refractive index].

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 OPTICAL DESCRIPTION

Total internal reflection can be demonstrated using a semi-circular block

of glass or plastic. A “ray box” shines a narrow beam of light (a “ray”)
onto the glass. The semi-circular shape ensures that a ray pointing
towards the centre of the flat face will hit the curved surface at a right
angle; this will prevent refraction at the air/glass boundary of the curved
surface. At the glass/air boundary of the flat surface, what happens will
depend on the angle? Where is the critical angle measurement which is
caused by the sun or a light source (measured normal to the surface):
• If @<@C , the ray will split. Some of the ray will reflect off the
boundary, and some will refract as it passes through. This is not
total internal reflection.
• If @>@C , the entire ray reflects from the boundary. None passes
through. This is called total internal reflection.
This physical property makes optical fibres useful and prismatic
binoculars possible. It is also what gives diamonds their distinctive
sparkle, as diamond has an unusually high refractive index.

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 CRITICAL ANGLE

The critical angle is the angle of incidence above which total internal
reflection occurs. The angle of incidence is measured with respect to
the normal at the refractive boundary (see diagram illustrating Snell’s
law). Consider a light ray passing from glass into air. The light
emanating from the interface is bent towards the glass. When the
incident angle is increased sufficiently, the transmitted angle (in air)
reaches 90 degrees. It is at this point no light is transmitted into air.
The critical angle is given by Snell’s law. nl sin 0, = n2 sin 9t Rearranging
Snell's Law, we get incidence sin 9: = — sin 9t
i

To find the critical angle, we find the value for 0j when 9t = 90° and thus, sin 6t
— 1.
The resulting value of is equal to the critical angle 9C .
Now, we can solve for 9;, and we get the equation for the critical angle:

ec = et = sin-1 g)
If the incident ray is precisely at the critical angle, the refracted ray is tangent
to the boundary at the point of incidence. If for example, n1 sin 9{ = n2 sin 9t
Rearranging Snell's Law, we get incidence
sin 91 = — sin 9t
"i

To find the critical angle, we find the value for 0j when Gt = 90° and thus, sin 0t
= 1.
The resulting value of is equal to the critical angle 9C .
Now, we can solve for 0(, and we get the equation for the critical angle:

O
8 C = Oi = sin

If the incident ray is precisely at the critical angle, the refracted ray is
tangent to the boundary at the point of incidence. If for example,
visible light is travelling through acrylic glass (with an index of
refraction of 1.50) into air (with an index of refraction of 1.00), the
calculation would give the critical angle for light from acrylic into air,
which is
( rso ) - 4 1 - 8 0

visible light is travelling through acrylic glass (with an index of

refraction of 1.50) into air (with an index of refraction of 1.00), the
calculation would give the critical angle for light from acrylic into air,
which is

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 PHASE SHIFT UPON TOTAL INTERNAL
REFLECTION

A lesser-known aspect of total internal reflection is that the reflected

light has an angle dependent phase shift between the reflected and
incident light. Mathematically this means that the Fresnel reflection
coefficient becomes a complex rather than a real number. This phase
shift is polarization dependent and grows as the incidence angle
deviates further from the critical angle toward grazing incidence. The
polarization dependent phase shift is long known and was used by
Fresnel to design the Fresnel rhomb which allows transforming
circular polarization to linear polarization and vice versa for a wide
range of wavelengths (colours), in contrast to the quarter wave plate.
The polarization dependent phase shift is also the reason why TE and
TM guided modes have different dispersion relations.

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 TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION IN DIAMOND
From glass to air the critical angle is about but it varies from one
medium to another. The material that gives the smallest critical angle
is diamond. That is why they sparkle so much! Rays of light can
easily be made to ‘bounce around inside them’ by careful cutting of
the stone and the refraction at the surfaces splits the light into a
spectrum of colours! Relatively speaking, the critical angle for the
diamond-air boundary is extremely small. This property of the
diamond-air boundary plays an important role in the brilliance of a
diamond gemstone. Having a small critical angle, light has the
tendency to become “trapped” inside of a diamond once it enters.
Most rays approach the diamond at angles of incidence greater than
the critical angle (as it is so small) so a light ray will typically
undergo TIR several times before finally refracting out of the
diamond. This gives diamond a tendency to sparkle. The effect can be
enhanced by the cutting of a diamond gemstone with a ‘strategically’
planned shape.

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APPLICATION OF TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION

1. Total internal reflection is the operating principle of optical fibres,

which are used in endoscopes and telecommunications.
2. Total internal reflection is the operating principle of automotive
rain sensors, which control automatic windscreen/windshield
wipers.
3. Another application of total internal reflection is the spatial
filtering of light.
4. Prismatic binoculars use the principle of total internal reflections
to get a very clear image.
5. Gonioscopy employs total internal reflection to view the
anatomical angle formed between the eye’s cornea and iris.

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6. Optical fingerprinting devices use frustrated total internal
reflection in order to record an image of a person’s fingerprint
without the use of ink.
7. A Total internal reflection fluorescence microscope uses the
evanescent wave produced by TIR to excite fluorophores close to a
surface. This is useful for the study of surface properties of
biological samples.

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 MATERIALS REQUIRED

1. Empty Soda Pop Bottle (2

Liter).
2. Tape.
3. Drill Bits.
4. Water.
5. Green Laser.
6. Bucket.
7. Old Books,Ect...(For Stand).

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 PROCEDURE

1. First set up the soda bottle by drilling a hole near the bottom of
the bottle.
2. Begin with a drill bit that has a diameter which is slightly larger
than the diameter of the laser that will be used.
3. We used a 1/4 inch drill bit, however sizes as small as 7/32 inch
worked as well.

4. First tape the hole and then fill the bottle with water.
5. The cap will prevent leaking because it creates a vacuum in the
6. bottle.
7. Stand the soda bottle on top of a stack of books so the hole is
facing the bucket.
8. The laser should be placed in a binder clip so it stays on, and then
set on a stack of books and papers.
9. The laser should be lined up so that the laser light goes through
the soda bottle, and into the center of the hole.
10. Carefully remove the tape and then unscrew the top of the soda
bottle.
11. The light should reflect within the stream of water so that you
could see at least a few points of reflection.
12. The light should be visible through the entire stream.

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13. If the reflections of the light aren’t clear, it may be necessary
to expand the hole by drilling through the existing hole with a
larger drill bit.
14. This process may need to be repeated several times.

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 RESULT

• In this case,[n of air=1.00],[n of water=1.33],therefore;

• In this demo light will continually reflect through the stream of

water creating total internal reflection(TIR).The stream of water
will ‘carry’ the water though, to the end of the stream.

Air

• Total Internal Reflection is the principle behind fibre optics.

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 CONCLUSION

Total Internal Reflection enables light to transmit within a glass fibre

as well. The light is often found to be reflected from the sides of fibre
and always follows a path. At certain times, light can be transmitted
around corners with the help of glass fibre. As the bends of the fibres
are not sharp, the light is found to strike at a greater angle than the
critical angle.

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 PRECAUTIONS

• This is a messy experiment. Be ready to adjust the bucket which

catches the stream of water.
• Also, be aware that the stream’s curvature will change as the water
level decreases. It will bend closer to the bottle, and the bucket
may need to be adjusted again. When the water level is a little
above the hole there will be no total internal reflection although
the stream will continue. Place the cap back on, or put the bottle
inside of the bucket.
• Make sure to have lots of paper towels! Towels or rags could be
useful too. However, this mess is water, and therefore easy to clean
up.
• Some resources suggest putting a drop of food colouring in the
bottom of the bucket to match the laser light, giving the
appearance that the water has permanently ‘trapped’ the coloured
light.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. wikipedia.com
2. http://physicsed.buffalostate.edu
3. Physics NCERT book for class XII
4. www.knowledgecycle.in/Blog

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