Refraction of light :-

When light travels obliquely from one transparent medium into

another it gets bent. This bending of light is called refraction of light.
When light travels from a rarer medium to a denser medium, it
bends towards the normal.
When light travels from a denser medium to a rarer medium to a
rarer medium, it bends away from the normal.

Normal Normal

Rarer medium Denser medium

Denser medium Rarer medium

 Incident ray Normal
Angle of incidence i
Air
Glass
Angle of refraction r

Refracted ray
Rectangular glass slab

Glass
Air Angle of emergence
e
Emergent ray
displacement
Normal
 Light slows down when it enters an optically denser
medium. The refracted ray bends towards the
normal when the second medium is optically more
dense than the first.
Incident ray

normal
i
air

water r

Refracted ray
 Light speeds up when it enters an optically less
dense medium. The refracted ray bends away from
the normal when the second medium is optically less
dense than the first.
Incident ray

normal

water i

air
r

Refracted ray
 Among the 3 transparent mediums (air, water
and glass), glass has the highest optical
Incident ray
density.
air
air Refracted ray
i1
r2

r1 water i2 water
i2 r1
Refracted ray Refracted ray

r2 glass
i1
glass
Refracted ray Incident ray
Law 1
The Incident Ray, Refracted Ray and Normal Ray all lie on the same
plane

Law 2
The Ratio of sin of Angle of Incidence and Angle of Refraction is
constant for a particular medium
This constant is called Refractive Index
It is actually called Refractive Index of the second medium with
respect to the first medium.
◦ sin
sin 𝑖
𝑟
= 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 where, i = Angle of incidence
r = Angle of reflection
constant= Refractive index
The sin of an angle is the ratio of the opposite side to the hypotenuse, If the angle is one of
the acute angles.

Sin θ = Opposite Side/Hypotenuse

1. Refractive index of glass is 1.5. If the speed of light in vacuum is 3 X 108
m/s, find velocity of light in medium.

Solution: Refractive index, n=C/v

= Velocity of light in vacuum / Velocity of light in medium
v=C/n
= 3 X 108 / 1.5
= 2 X 10 m/s. (Ans.)
2. Speed of light in glass is 2 X 108 m/s. Find the refractive index of glass.

Solution: Refractive Index of glass (n) = C / v

= 3 X 108 / 2 X 108
= 1.5 (Ans.)
3. If the refractive index of water is 4/3 and that of glass is 3/2. Find
the refractive index of glass w.r.t. water.

Solution: nw = 4/3, ng = 3/2

Refractive index of glass w.r.t. water ( wng ) = ang / anw
= 3/2 / 4/3
= 3/2 X 3/4
= 9/8 (Ans.)
There are two types of lenses:
◦ Convex Lens:

◦ Concave Lens:
Spherical lenses :-
A spherical lens is a transparent material bounded by two surfaces
one or both of which are spherical.
Spherical lenses are of two main types. They are convex and
concave lenses.
i) Convex lens :- is thicker in the middle and thinner at the edges.
Rays of light parallel to the principal axis after refraction through a
convex lens meet at a point (converge) on the principal axis.
ii) Concave lens :- is thinner in the middle and thicker at the edges.
Rays of light parallel to the principal axis after refraction get diverged
and appear o come from a point on the principal axis on the same
side of the lens.
Centre of curvature: The centre of sphere of part of
which a lens is formed is called the centre of curvature
of the lens. Since concave and convex lenses are
formed by the combination of two parts of spheres,
therefore they have two centres of curvature.
One centre of curvature is usually denoted by C1 and
second is denoted by C2.
Focus: Point at which parallel rays of light converge in a
concave lens and parallel rays of light diverge from the
point is called Focus or Principal Focus of the lens

▪If you pass parallel rays from the opposite surface of the
lens, you get another principal focus on the opposite
side. Letter F is usually used to represent principal
focus. However, a lens has two principal foci. They are
represented by F1 and F2. The distance of the principal
focus from the optical centre of a lens is called its focal
length. The letter f is used to represent the focal length.
Principal Axis: Imaginary line that passes through the
centres of curvature of a lens is called Principal Focus.
Optical centre: The central point of a lens is called its
Optical Centre. A ray passes through optical centre of
a lens without any deviation.
Radius of curvature: The distance between optical
centre and centre of curvature is called the radius of
curvature, which is generally denoted by R.
Focal Length: The distance between optical centre
and principal focus is called focal length of a lens.
Focal length of a lens is half of the radius of
curvature.
This is the cause that the centre of curvature is
generally denoted by 2F for a lens instead of C.
A thin lens is defined as one in which the separation of the two
surfaces is negligible compared to focal length.
Refraction by spherical lenses :-
i) In a convex lens a ray of light parallel to the principal
axis after refraction passes through the focus on the other
side of the lens. In a concave lens it appears to diverge
from the focus on the same side of the lens.
ii) In a convex lens a ray of light passing through the focus
after refraction goes parallel to the principal axis. In a
concave lens a ray of light directed towards the focus
after refraction goes parallel to the principal axis.
iii) In a convex lens and concave lens a ray of light
passing through the optical centre goes without any
deviation.
Images formed by convex lens :-
i) When the object is at infinity the image is formed at the
focus F2, it is highly diminished, real and inverted.
ii) When the object is beyond 2F1, the image is formed
between F2 and 2F2, it if diminished, real and inverted.
iii) When the object is at 2F1, the image is formed at 2F2, it
is the same size as the object, real and inverted.
4 - Object is between F and 2F Image is Real,
Inverted, larger than the object (Magnified)
5. Object is at F
•Image is Real
•Image is Inverted
•Image is larger than the object (Magnified)
•6 - Object is between O and F
Image is virtual (behind the lens), erect
Image is larger than the object (Magnified)
Convex lens is used as
•It is used as Magnifying Glass
•It is used to Make Microscope
•It is used in spectacles to correct the
vision. It cures defects called
hypermetropia (far sightedness) where
patients can't see objects closer to them
Images formed by concave lens :-
i) When the object is at infinity, the image is formed at
the focus F1 on the same side of the lens, it is highly
diminished, virtual and erect.
ii) When the object is between infinity and F1, the image is
formed between F1 and O on the same side of the lens, it
is diminished, virtual and erect.
3
Concave lens is used as
•It is used as a spy hole in doors (where we can see
visitor from a small opening)
•It is used in spectacles to correct the vision. It cures
defects called myopia (near sightedness) where
patients can't see objects far away
•They are used in camera to focus on a single object,
Hence we get a clearer picture
•It is used in Flashlights. Concave lenses are used in
flashlights to widen the beam produced by the bulb.
a) Lens formula for spherical lenses :-
The lens formula for spherical lenses is the relationship between the
object distance (u), image distance (v) and focal length (f).
The lens formula is expressed as :-

b) Magnification produced by spherical lenses :-

Magnification for spherical lens is the ratio of the height of the
image to the height of the object.
18) Power of a lens :-
The power of a lens is the reciprocal of its focal length
(in metres).
The SI unit of power is dioptre (D).

1 dioptre is the power of a lens whose focal length is 1

metre.
The power of a convex lens is positive ( + ve ) and the
power of a concave lens is negative ( - ve ).
Power of Combination of Lens
If more than 1 one lens are used
together, it is called Combination of Lens

Power of Combination of Lens is

Simple Algebraic sum of all the Lenses

Power of Combination of Lens = Power of

Lens 1 + Power of Lens 2
P = P 1+ P 2
Find the power of a concave lens of focal length 2 m.

Answer
Since focal length of concave lens is negative
Focal length = − 2m

We know that,
Power of a lens = 1/Focal Length
= 1/( − 2)
= − 0.5 D

Power of a concave lens is − 0.5 D