Refraction of light in denser medium

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Light does not bend within a denser medium but changes direction at the interface between different density mediums. When light enters a medium with a higher refractive index at an angle, it slows down, causing the wavefront to "bunch up" and alter its path. This bending occurs because the part of the wave still in the lower refractive index medium travels faster than the part in the denser medium. The change in speed and direction is a result of the difference in refractive indices. Understanding this phenomenon is crucial in optics and wave physics.
aditya ver.2.0
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Why does light bend in a denser medium?
 
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aditya ver.2.0 said:
Why does light bend in a denser medium?
It doesn't. Light travels in a straight line in the medium, its path bends at the interface of different density mediums. After it bends it travels with a different speed.

Sorry I haven't answered your question, why. Atomic physics is not my field.
 
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A denser medium typically has a higher index of refraction. When a wave moves at an angle other than 90 degrees into a medium with a higher refractive index than it's currently traveling in, it slows down. The part of the wavefront still moving in the lower refractive index medium continues to move at a higher speed and the wave "bunches up" on itself at the interface, changing its direction. (Bunches up is a highly technical term that means that the wave does something I'm not certain how to describe. :p)
 
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