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Two transparent media A and B are separated by a plane boundary. The speed of light in those media are 1.5×10⁸ m s⁻¹ and 2.0×10⁸ m s⁻¹, respectively. The critical angle for a ray of light for these two media is

Asked in NEET 2022 · Total internal reflection and optical fibres

Answer: (2) sin⁻¹(0.750)

Step-by-step solution

Given: v_A=1.5×10⁸ m s⁻¹ and v_B=2.0×10⁸ m s⁻¹.

Idea: light is slower in A, so A is the denser medium and total internal reflection happens for a ray going from A into B.

μ_A=c/(v_A)=(3×10⁸)/(1.5×10⁸)=2

μ_B=c/(v_B)=(3×10⁸)/(2.0×10⁸)=1.5

At the critical angle the refracted ray grazes the boundary: μ_A sin C=μ_B sin 90°

sin C=(1.5)/2=0.750

C=sin⁻¹(0.750)

Why the other options are wrong

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