Critical Angle (Total Internal Reflection)
θc = asin(n2 / n1), with n1 > n2 so the argument stays in [-1, 1]
What it says
Gives the critical angle of incidence beyond which total internal reflection occurs at a boundary from a denser medium (n1) to a rarer medium (n2).
Symbols
| Symbol | Quantity | Dimension |
|---|---|---|
n1 | Refractive index of denser medium (dimensionless) | 1 |
n2 | Refractive index of rarer medium (dimensionless) | 1 |
θc | Critical angle (rad) | 1 |
Work it out
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Connects to
Filed under Optics · derive through it in the explorer