CLASS 10 SCIENCE

Chapter 9 — Light: Reflection and Refraction

Student-Friendly Detailed Notes • Part 2

Main focus: Refraction of light, laws of refraction, refractive index, glass slab, atmospheric refraction,
lenses, lens terminology and principal rays.

1. What is Refraction?
When light travels from one transparent medium to another, its speed changes. Because of this change in
speed, the direction of light may also change at the boundary. This bending of light is called refraction.

For example, a pencil partly dipped in water appears bent at the water surface. The apparent bending
occurs because light from the submerged part changes direction when it passes from water to air.

Key Points
• Refraction occurs because the speed of light is different in different transparent media.

• Light bends towards or away from the normal depending on the optical densities of the two media.

• Refraction does not mean that light stops or is reflected completely. Some light can also be reflected at
the boundary.

2. Why Does Light Bend?

The speed of light is different in different media. When light enters a medium where it travels at a different
speed, its direction changes unless it enters exactly along the normal.

When light enters a denser medium obliquely, it slows down and bends towards the normal. When it enters
a rarer medium, it speeds up and bends away from the normal.

Key Points
• Air → glass: generally bends towards the normal.

• Glass → air: generally bends away from the normal.

• Along the normal: the ray changes speed but does not change direction.

3. Important Terms in Refraction

Term Meaning
Incident ray Ray of light falling on the refracting surface
Refracted ray Ray travelling through the second medium after refraction
Normal Perpendicular to the surface at the point of incidence
Angle of incidence (i) Angle between incident ray and normal
Angle of refraction (r) Angle between refracted ray and normal
Optically denser medium Medium in which light travels slower
Optically rarer medium Medium in which light travels faster
4. Laws of Refraction — Snell's Law
Refraction follows two important laws.

First law: The incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal at the point of incidence all lie in the same
plane.

Second law: For a given pair of media, the ratio of the sine of the angle of incidence to the sine of the angle
of refraction is constant.

sin i / sin r = constant

This constant is related to the refractive index of one medium with respect to the other.

5. Refractive Index
The refractive index tells us how strongly a transparent medium affects the speed of light compared with
another medium.

If the refractive index of medium 2 with respect to medium 1 is represented by n■■, then:

n■■ = sin i / sin r

The refractive index of a medium with respect to vacuum or approximately air can also be written as the ratio
of the speed of light in vacuum to the speed of light in that medium:

n=c/v

Here c is the speed of light in vacuum and v is the speed of light in the medium.

Memory idea: Larger refractive index generally means light travels more slowly in that medium.

6. Refraction Through a Rectangular Glass Slab

When a ray passes through a rectangular glass slab, it bends towards the normal on entering glass and
away from the normal on emerging into air.

The emergent ray is parallel to the original incident ray, although it is shifted sideways. This sideways shift is
called lateral displacement.

The emergent ray is therefore not generally in the same line as the incident ray.

Key Points
• Incident ray enters from air into glass.

• Ray bends towards the normal inside glass.

• At the second surface it bends away from the normal.

• Emergent ray is parallel to the incident ray.

• The sideways shift is lateral displacement.

7. Why Does a Coin in Water Appear Raised?

When light from a coin under water travels from water to air, it bends away from the normal. The eye
assumes that light travelled in a straight line and traces the refracted rays backward.
As a result, the coin appears to be at a position closer to the surface than its actual position. Therefore, the
apparent depth is less than the real depth.
8. Atmospheric Refraction
The atmosphere contains layers of air having different temperatures and densities. Therefore, the optical
properties of air can vary from layer to layer.

Light travelling through these layers is continuously refracted. This phenomenon is called atmospheric
refraction.

Key Points
• Atmospheric refraction explains several natural observations.

• The apparent position of celestial objects can differ from their actual position.

• It can cause stars to appear to twinkle.

9. Twinkling of Stars
Stars are very far away and behave approximately like point sources of light. Their light passes through
different layers of Earth's atmosphere before reaching our eyes.

Because atmospheric layers are not equally dense and their conditions change, the path of starlight changes
slightly and continuously. The apparent brightness and position can therefore fluctuate, producing the effect
called twinkling of stars.

10. Why Planets Usually Do Not Twinkle

Planets are much closer than stars and appear as extended sources rather than point sources. Light
reaches the eye from many points on the planet's apparent disc.

Atmospheric fluctuations affecting different rays tend to average out, so the overall brightness appears much
steadier than that of a star.

11. Advanced Sunrise and Delayed Sunset

Because of atmospheric refraction, sunlight can reach an observer even when the Sun is actually slightly
below the horizon.

This makes the Sun appear above the horizon a little earlier than its actual geometric position and remain
apparently visible a little longer after it has geometrically set.

12. Scattering vs Refraction — Do Not Confuse Them

Refraction is the bending of light when its speed changes as it passes from one medium to another.

Scattering is the redirection of light in different directions by particles in a medium. Scattering is important in
later parts of the chapter when explaining the colour of the sky.
13. Lenses — Introduction
A lens is a transparent refracting medium bounded by two surfaces, at least one of which is curved. Lenses
form images mainly by refraction.

Two basic types are convex lenses and concave lenses.

Convex Lens Concave Lens

Thicker at the centre and thinner at the edges. Thinner at the centre and thicker at the edges.
Converging lens. Diverging lens.
Can form real or virtual images depending on object position.
For a real object, forms a virtual, erect and diminished image.
Used in magnifying glasses, cameras and many optical instruments.
Used in spectacles for correcting short-sightedness.

14. Important Terms for Lenses

Optical centre (O): The central point of a lens. A ray passing through the optical centre of a thin lens
emerges without appreciable deviation.

Principal axis: The straight line passing through the optical centre and the principal foci.

Principal focus: The point where rays parallel to the principal axis converge, or from which they appear to
diverge, after refraction.

Focal length: The distance between the optical centre and principal focus.

Principal foci: A lens has two principal foci, one on each side.

15. Principal Rays for a Convex Lens

A ray parallel to the principal axis is refracted through the principal focus on the other side.

A ray passing through the principal focus before reaching the lens emerges parallel to the principal axis.

A ray passing through the optical centre emerges approximately undeviated.

Key Points
• These three standard rays are enough to construct most Class 10 convex-lens ray diagrams.

• Use at least two rays to locate an image accurately.

16. Principal Rays for a Concave Lens

A ray parallel to the principal axis diverges after refraction and appears to come from the principal focus on
the same side.

A ray directed towards the principal focus on the opposite side emerges parallel to the principal axis.

A ray passing through the optical centre emerges approximately undeviated.

17. Image Formation by a Convex Lens
The position and nature of the image formed by a convex lens depend on the position of the object relative
to F and 2F.

Object Position Image Position Nature Size

At infinity At F on other side Real, inverted Highly diminished

Beyond 2F Between F and 2F Real, inverted Diminished

At 2F At 2F Real, inverted Same size

Between F and 2F Beyond 2F Real, inverted Enlarged

At F At infinity Real, inverted Highly enlarged

Between O and F Same side of lens Virtual, erect Enlarged

Important: A convex lens can form either a real inverted image or a virtual erect image. The virtual enlarged
image occurs when the object is between the optical centre and focus.

18. Image Formation by a Concave Lens

A concave lens is a diverging lens. For a real object, it always forms a virtual, erect and diminished image on
the same side of the lens as the object.

The image lies between the optical centre and the principal focus.

Quick table:
Object Image Position Nature Size

At any finite distance Between O and F on object side Virtual, erect Diminished

At infinity At F on object side Virtual, erect Highly diminished

19. Lens Formula and Magnification — Introduction

For a spherical lens, the relationship between object distance, image distance and focal length is called the
lens formula.

1/f = 1/v − 1/u

Magnification produced by a lens is given by:

m = h■/h■ = v/u

The signs of u, v and f must be assigned using the appropriate Cartesian sign convention.
20. Mirror vs Lens — Quick Comparison
Feature Spherical Mirror Lens
Main phenomenon Reflection Refraction
Main formula 1/f = 1/v + 1/u 1/f = 1/v − 1/u
Common types Concave, convex Convex, concave
Material Reflecting curved surface Transparent refracting material
Image formation By reflected rays By refracted rays

21. Formula Box — Part 2

• Snell's law: sin i / sin r = constant

• Refractive index: n = c/v

• Relative refractive index: n■■ = sin i/sin r

• Lens formula: 1/f = 1/v − 1/u

• Lens magnification: m = h■/h■ = v/u

22. Exam-Oriented Definitions

Refraction Change in direction of light when it passes obliquely from one transparent medium to another b
Refractive index A measure of the optical density of a medium, commonly expressed as the ratio c/v for the med
Lateral displacement The sideways shift between the incident ray's original path and the emergent ray after passage
Atmospheric refraction Refraction of light caused by passage through layers of Earth's atmosphere having different op
Convex lens A lens thicker at the centre and thinner at the edges, generally acting as a converging lens.
Concave lens A lens thinner at the centre and thicker at the edges, generally acting as a diverging lens.

23. Part 2 Quick Revision

Refraction → change in speed → bending → Snell's law → refractive index → glass slab → lateral
displacement → atmospheric refraction → stars twinkle → advanced sunrise → lenses → convex/concave
→ ray rules → image formation → lens formula and magnification.

24. Board-Exam Checklist

■ Always draw the normal before measuring angles i and r.

■ Remember: angles in refraction are measured from the normal.

■ Know the direction of bending for rarer → denser and denser → rarer transitions.

■ Learn the glass slab diagram and lateral displacement.

■ Know the reasons for twinkling of stars and advanced sunrise/delayed sunset.

■ Memorise convex- and concave-lens ray rules.

■ Learn the complete convex-lens image table.

■ Remember that a concave lens always forms a virtual, erect and diminished image for a real object.

■ Use the correct lens formula and sign convention in numericals.