written by
Tom Henderson
This item is a chapter in a beginning physics tutorial. It explores the conceptual and mathematical principles governing the bending of waves as they cross the boundary between two media. The ray nature of light is used to explain the behavior of light as it refracts, or bends, at planar and curved surfaces. Refraction principles are combined with ray diagrams to explain how lenses produce images.
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![]() <a href="https://www.compadre.org/portal/items/detail.cfm?ID=4754">Henderson, Tom. The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light. December 20, 2004.</a>
![]() T. Henderson, The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light (1996), <https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn>.
![]() Henderson, T. (2004, December 20). The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light. Retrieved May 1, 2025, from https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn
![]() Henderson, Tom. The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light. December 20, 2004. https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn (accessed 1 May 2025).
![]() Henderson, Tom. The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light. 1996. 20 Dec. 2004. 1 May 2025 <https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn>.
![]() @misc{
Author = "Tom Henderson",
Title = {The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light},
Volume = {2025},
Number = {1 May 2025},
Month = {December 20, 2004},
Year = {1996}
}
![]() %A Tom Henderson %T The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light %D December 20, 2004 %U https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn %O text/html ![]() %0 Electronic Source %A Henderson, Tom %D December 20, 2004 %T The Physics Classroom: Refraction and the Ray Model of Light %V 2025 %N 1 May 2025 %8 December 20, 2004 %9 text/html %U https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/refrn Disclaimer: ComPADRE offers citation styles as a guide only. We cannot offer interpretations about citations as this is an automated procedure. Please refer to the style manuals in the Citation Source Information area for clarifications.
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