= State Fermat's principle governing the paths traced by light rays in a medium. A horizontally stratified medium has refractive index μ(z) Va- bz, where z is height and a and b are positive constants. Prove that the path of a light ray within a vertical plane in this medium is an inverted parabola. Show further that all such parabolas have their directrix in the plane z = a/b. [The directrix of a parabola in the standard form y2 = 4ax is the line x = -a.]
= State Fermat's principle governing the paths traced by light rays in a medium. A horizontally stratified medium has refractive index μ(z) Va- bz, where z is height and a and b are positive constants. Prove that the path of a light ray within a vertical plane in this medium is an inverted parabola. Show further that all such parabolas have their directrix in the plane z = a/b. [The directrix of a parabola in the standard form y2 = 4ax is the line x = -a.]
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9. State Fermat's principle governing the paths traced by light rays in a medium.
A horizontally stratified medium has refractive index μ(z): Va-bz, where z is
height and a and b are positive constants. Prove that the path of a light ray within
a vertical plane in this medium is an inverted parabola. Show further that all such
parabolas have their directrix in the plane z = a/b. [The directrix of a parabola in
the standard form y² = 4ax is the line x = -a.]](/v2/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcontent.bartleby.com%2Fqna-images%2Fquestion%2F42fef5e4-1ed4-4123-8ad0-1e3cfe347ecd%2F35fba5b1-228a-4074-913c-8c6ee0b3397e%2F0qnlemb_processed.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
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9. State Fermat's principle governing the paths traced by light rays in a medium.
A horizontally stratified medium has refractive index μ(z): Va-bz, where z is
height and a and b are positive constants. Prove that the path of a light ray within
a vertical plane in this medium is an inverted parabola. Show further that all such
parabolas have their directrix in the plane z = a/b. [The directrix of a parabola in
the standard form y² = 4ax is the line x = -a.]
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