The amount that light refracts depends on its _______________.

The amount that light refracts depends on its _______________.

• A. Wavelength
• B. Frequency
• C. Amplitude
• D. Speed

Answer: (A)

Light bends at a boundary because its speed changes between media, and Snell’s law ties that bending to the speeds (or refractive indices) in the two media. In many materials, the refractive index is different for different colors, a phenomenon called dispersion. Since wavelength determines how much the light is slowed in a given medium, the amount of refraction varies with wavelength. Shorter wavelengths bend more than longer ones, which is why a prism splits white light into a spectrum. Frequency remains unchanged across the boundary, and amplitude doesn’t affect the direction of bending. So the wavelength governs how much refraction occurs.

Light bends at a boundary because its speed changes between media, and Snell’s law ties that bending to the speeds (or refractive indices) in the two media. In many materials, the refractive index is different for different colors, a phenomenon called dispersion. Since wavelength determines how much the light is slowed in a given medium, the amount of refraction varies with wavelength. Shorter wavelengths bend more than longer ones, which is why a prism splits white light into a spectrum. Frequency remains unchanged across the boundary, and amplitude doesn’t affect the direction of bending. So the wavelength governs how much refraction occurs.