Question

A beam of light passes through a liquid into air. Angle 1, angle of

Answer 1

Answer: 1.57

Explanation:

This described situation is known as Refraction, a phenomenon in which light bends or changes its direction when passing through a medium with a index of refraction different from the other medium.  

In this context, the index of refraction is a number that describes how fast light propagates through a medium or material.  

According to Snell’s Law:  

$n_{1}sin(\theta_{1})=n_{2}sin(\theta_{2})$ (1)  

Where:  

$n_{1}$ is the first medium index of refraction (the value we want to know)

$n_{2}=1$ is the second medium index of refraction (air)  

$\theta_{1}=23\°$ is the angle of incidence

$\theta_{2}=38\°$ is the angle of refraction

Now, let's find $n_{1}$ from (1):

$n_{1}=n_{2}\frac{sin \theta_{2}}{sin \theta_{1}}$ (2)  

Substituting the known values:

$n_{1}=1\frac{sin(38\°)}{sin(23\°)}$  

Finally:

$n_{1}=1.57$