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Light waves travel from an optically rarer medium to an optically denser medium. Their velocity decreases because of a change in ______.

Asked in GUJCET 2015 · Snell's law, slabs and apparent depth

Answer: (1) wavelength

Step-by-step solution

Given: light crossing from a rarer into a denser medium.

Idea: the source fixes the frequency f; a medium cannot swallow or create wavefronts, so the same f passes through.

For any wave v = fλ.

In the denser medium the speed is v = c/n, which is smaller.

Since f is unchanged, λ = v/f must shrink in exactly the same ratio.

So the velocity falls because the wavelength changes.

Why the other options are wrong

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