11.

8 Refractive index
OCR Physics A Method sheet

Investigating the refractive index of liquids

Specification references
• 1.1.2 a)
• 1.1.3 d)
• 1.1.4 a) c) d) e)
• 4.4.2 d) (i)

Learning outcomes
After completing the practical you should be able to:
• use a parallax technique to determine when there is no parallax effect
• evaluate a method to find the refractive index of water.

Background
Refraction is caused by the change in speed of a wave as it passes a boundary
between two media. This change in speed can cause a change in path for the wave,
which is easily observed for light rays. As the path of the ray is changed it appears
as if the ray comes from a different origin and so the source of the ray seems to be
at a different point.
Measuring the refractive index of a solid is relatively straightforward. The angle of
incidence and refraction can be measured and a value calculated from this data by
using Snell’s law. Snell’s law states that n sin θ = k, where n is the refractive index, θ
is the angle between the normal and the incident ray, and k is a constant. Measuring
the refractive index of a liquid is more difficult. This experiment uses a simple
technique involving a parallax effect and the real and apparent depth of the liquid.
The refractive index of a material can be shown to be related by the relationship
real depth
refractive index =
apparent d epth

Safety
• Be cautious with water and clean up spills immediately.
• You will be using a plane mirror and various glass containers. Any broken glass
must be cleared up promptly.

Equipment and materials

• two identical optical pins • a plane mirror
• a supply of water • a range of containers of different heights
• a retort stand, boss, and clamp between 100 mm and 400 mm
• a 50 cm rule with 1 mm resolution • a cork

© Oxford University Press 2015 www.oxfordsecondary.co.uk/acknowledgements

This resource sheet may have been changed from the original 1
 11.8 Refractive index
OCR Physics A Method sheet

Method
1 Assemble the apparatus as shown in Figure 1.
a Place one of the optical pins in the bottom of the container.
b Fill the container to the brim with water.
c Rest the plane mirror on the top of the container, carefully ensuring that the
back surface of the mirror lies on the surface of the water.
2 Place the second pin directly above the container held in the cork at
approximately the same height above the surface of the water as the first pin is
below the surface.
3 At this point you should be able to see the reflection of the upper pin in the mirror
and the lower pin.
4 Move your head back and forth whilst looking into the mirror.
The positions of the lower pin and the reflection will appear to move relative
to each other due to a parallax effect.
5 Adjust the position of the upper pin downwards. Move your head back and forth
again to check for the parallax effect.
6 Continue to move the pin downwards, checking for parallax. Eventually there will
be no parallax effect.
At this point the image of the pin in the mirror and the pin beneath the
surface appear to be exactly the same distance from the surface of the
mirror.
7 Measure the height of the upper pin from the surface of the water. This is equal
to the apparent depth of the water.
8 Measure the depth of the water in the container carefully. This is the real depth
of the water.
9 Repeat this procedure with containers of different depths until you have five sets
of data.
10 Plot a graph comparing the real and apparent depths of the liquid.
a Plot real depth on the y-axis.
b Plot apparent depth on the x-axis.

Figure 1 Apparatus

© Oxford University Press 2015 www.oxfordsecondary.co.uk/acknowledgements

This resource sheet may have been changed from the original 2
 11.8 Refractive index
OCR Physics A Method sheet

Results
Record your results from the experiment in this table.

Real depth / mm
Apparent depth / mm

Questions
1 Examine the technique used in this experiment.
a Suggest why a range of measurements is taken instead of using a single
measurement. (1 mark)
b Why does the mirror need to be placed so that its back surface is in contact
with the surface of the water? (1 mark)
2 The only measuring instrument used in this experiment is a 50 cm ruler.
a Describe how zero errors can arise from using metre rules and how they can
be reduced. (1 mark)
b Describe how random error due to parallax can arise when using a metre
rule and suggest how this can be reduced. (2 marks)
3 You have plotted a graph showing the relationship between the real and
apparent depth of the water.
a Add a line of best fit on your graph. (1 mark)
b In what way does your graph support the suggested relationship between the
real depth, the apparent depth, and the refractive index? (2 marks)
change in y - variable
c Calculate the gradient of your graph, where gradient = (2 marks)
change in x - variable
d State the refractive index of the water based on your data. (1 mark)
4 The accepted value for the refractive index of water is 1.33.
a Calculate the percentage difference between your answer and the accepted
value. (1 mark)
b Discuss the possible causes for the difference between your answer and the
accepted value for the refractive index of water. (2 marks)
c Suggest improvements to this experiment which will produce a more
accurate value for the refractive index for water. (2 marks)

© Oxford University Press 2015 www.oxfordsecondary.co.uk/acknowledgements

This resource sheet may have been changed from the original 3