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NUCLIDES
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why exactly does light bend in a medium??
NUCLIDES said:I mean on an atomic scale what exactly happens?
phinds said:There is no atomic scale. Photons are not atoms. It's more complicated than that. I suggest that you do some research on your own and come back if you have amore targeted question.
The short answer is that light has an energy that is the equivalent of mass and that "mass" is attracted by massive objects.
EDIT: OOPS ... I see that your original question wasn't why light bends around massive objects but why it bends when entering, say, glass. Google "diffraction".
NUCLIDES said:Firstly I am speeaking about refraction not diffraction.
See http://www.gcsescience.com/pwav42.htm It is about water waves but the same is true for light.NUCLIDES said:why exactly does light bend in a medium??
ehild said:It is an other question why is the speed of light less in a medium than in vacuum. You can explane it with the interaction of light with the atoms.
Light bends or refracts because it changes speed when it travels from one medium to another. The speed of light is different in different materials, and this change in speed causes the light to bend as it passes through the material.
The angle of incidence is the angle at which light hits the surface of a material. When light passes from one medium to another, the angle of incidence determines the amount of bending that will occur. A larger angle of incidence results in a larger amount of refraction.
The refractive index of a material is what determines how much light will bend when it passes through the material. This index is dependent on the physical properties of the material, such as its density and composition, which vary between materials and thus result in different angles of refraction.
When light enters a material at an angle, it bends and changes direction. This can cause objects to appear distorted or even invisible if the light is bent away from the viewer's line of sight. This is why objects in water may appear closer than they actually are.
No, light cannot refract in a vacuum because there are no particles or materials for it to pass through and change speed. Light only bends when it passes from one medium to another, such as air to water or glass.