Experiment no.

12
OPTICS: Law of Reflection
Objectives:

1. To observe the reflection of a single ray of light from a plane mirror

2. To observe the refraction of a single ray of light from a plane mirror

Materials

Light Source, Triangle Prism, and Protractor

Procedure:

1. Set up the equipment as shown in Figure. Adjust the light source, so a single ray
of light is pointing the middle portion of the base of the triangle. Label it as 0 0, using
a protractor, measure the angle of reflection of the light source.

2. Rotate the prism (see table below for different angles) and measure the angle of
reflection.

3. Solve the angle of reflection theoretically, and compared to the experimental

value:
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NAME SIGNATURE
Data and Results:

Angle of Angle of Reflection Angle of Reflection Percentage

Incidence (Theoretical) (Experimental) Error (%)
0
0
0
10
0
20
0
30
0
40
0
50
0
60
0
70
0
80
0
90
Computation:
Analysis

Conclusion
 INDIVIDUAL LABORATORY REPORT
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Course:___________________________________________ Score: _________

1. Part of the law of reflection states that the incident ray, normal, and the reflected
ray all lie in the same plane. Discuss how this is demonstrated on the activity

2. What happens to the angle of reflection as the angle of incidence increases?

3. A ray of light is reflected by two parallel mirrors (1) and (2) at points A and B. The
ray makes an angle of 25° with the axis of the two mirrors.

a) What is the angle of reflection at the point of incidence A?

b) What is the angle of reflection at the point of incidence B?
c) If the distance between the two mirrors id d = 4 cm and the length L of the two
mirror system is 3 meters, approximately how many reflections take place between
the two mirrors?
d) In a real system, at each reflection, there are losses of the light energy travelling
between the two mirrors. If L and d are fixed, what can be done to decrease the
number of reflections on the mirrors and hence the energy lost by reflection?