Snell's Law
n₁·sinθ₁ = n₂·sinθ₂
What it means
Snell's law describes how light bends when it passes between two media with different refractive indices.
Variables
| Symbol | Quantity | SI unit |
|---|---|---|
n₁ | refractive index | — |
n₂ | refractive index | — |
θ₁ | angle of incidence | rad |
θ₂ | angle of refraction | rad |
Worked example
Given n₁ = 1, θ₁ = 0.5236 rad, n₂ = 1.33, solve for θ₂:
θ₂ = 0.385412 rad