Refraction
Rays crossing a flat boundary between media with different refractive indices. Snell’s law relates incident and refracted angles; total internal reflection appears at grazing exit angles.
Who it's for: High-school and college optics; Snell’s law and critical angle.
Key terms
- Snell’s law
- refractive index
- refraction
- total internal reflection
- critical angle
How it works
Snell’s law n₁ sin θᵢ = n₂ sin θₜ relates angles measured from the surface normal. When sin θₜ would exceed 1 (light going from the optically denser medium toward a rarer one at a large angle), all energy is reflected—total internal reflection.
Key equations
More from Optics & Light
Other simulators in this category — or see all 31.
Total Internal Reflection
Find the critical angle. Fiber optics analogy.
Lens Simulator
Converging and diverging lenses with ray diagrams and image formation.
Simple Eye (Thin Lens)
P_total = P_eye + P_glasses; 1/v = P − 1/u vs retina; blur cue.
Thin Lens Equation
Hyperbola d_i(d_o), pole at d_o = f, schematic + 1/d check.
Prism & Dispersion
White light through a prism creating a rainbow spectrum.
Thin-Film Interference
Wedge fringes: n, d, θ; cos²(δ/2) colors and I(λ) at mid thickness.