Chapter 30, Problem 1ASA

To determine

The law of reflection and its application on reflecting surfaces.

Answer to Problem 1ASA

The law of reflection states that “the angle of reflection equals the angle of incidence.”

Explanation of Solution

When we look at things we see them because light from the object reflect back to our eye’s retina. When you look at a piece of white paper, you are seeing light scattered from it.

The law of reflection states that “the angle of reflection equals the angle of incidence.”

  ${\theta }_i={\theta }_r$

Here, ${\theta }_i$ is the angle of incident, and ${\theta }_r$ is the angle of reflection.

The angle of incidence and angle of reflection are measured relative to the perpendicular to the surface at the point where the light ray strikes.

The law of reflection is applied in various experiments including daily life events. A mirror is used in microscopes to reflect light to the specimen under the microscope. Large parabolic mirrors are used in astronomical reflecting telescope to gather dim light from distant stars. A plane mirror is used to reflect the image to the eyepiece and so on.