Atlantic Posted September 13, 2003 Posted September 13, 2003 Why does light bend when its speed is slowed?
YT2095 Posted September 13, 2003 Posted September 13, 2003 that`s not really refraction, refraction is more akin to re-direction, rather than slowing
NSX Posted September 13, 2003 Posted September 13, 2003 Yeah, and light does indeed go slower, it's because the medium is different.
Atlantic Posted September 13, 2003 Author Posted September 13, 2003 Like when light goes from a less dense material (medium1) to a more dense material (medium2) it bends toward the normal. why does it bend?
YT2095 Posted September 14, 2003 Posted September 14, 2003 light (photons) is a cross between a wave and a particle. In a vacume it`s speed is a constant. in a medium it is then subject to gravitational forces that will slow it a tiny bit. it doesn`t travel in a straight line exactly either, it`s a bit like a wave form going up and down, but the overall waveform does travel in a straight line (if unhindered). a bit like crinckle cut potato chips when you thow one. gravity effects light because of it`s Particle nature, but this particle can only exist if it`s as a waveform also. you`de never find a stationary photon.
Skye Posted September 14, 2003 Posted September 14, 2003 This reminds me why I'm not into physics. It can be explained by the Huygen's principle, that every point on a wave front propagates a spherical wavelet, and the effect of changing speeds as light changes medium on the way these wavelets propagate. That's about as good as I can do. This site probably has the best picture to explain it: http://www.sciencefx.com/huygens.htm
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