Light's Color Change in Different Media

[harmanbir]

if a ray of monochromatic light comes from a denser medium to a rarer medium does the color reaching a viewer in the rarer medium differ from the actual color of light in the denser medium (as wavelength of light is different for both the media)?

 

[DrClaude]

Have a look at https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/what-decides-the-colour-of-light.842780/

 

[harmanbir]

Have a look at https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/what-decides-the-colour-of-light.842780/

Thank you for sharing the link. In that thread a light ray just goes from a rarer medium to a denser and back to the same rarer medium so the wavelength of the light at the start and end is the same and there is no difference in the color of the original light. My question is different as light passes from denser to rarer so the wavelength received by observer will be different. shouldn't that make the original color of an object in the denser medium different from what is received?

 

[nasu]

No. The color depends on frequency of the light, which is the same in both media..

But even if it were dependent of wavelength (hypothetically), then why would you care about the wavelength in that medium or in any other medium? Your retina is in the same medium all the time and that decides the wavelength of the light reaching your receptors.

 

[fresh_42]

But even if it were dependent of wavelength (hypothetically), then why would you care about the wavelength in that medium or in any other medium?

One reason for this question, at least that's been why I was interested in, are applications in ophthalmology. Being someone who has been lasered a few times it was an interesting answer.