Aray of light is incident on a flat surface of a block of polystyrene, with an index of refraction of 1.49, that is submerged in water. the ray is split at the surface, where the angle of refraction of the transmitted ray is 18.6°. what is the angle of reflection (in degrees) of the reflected ray?

To solve this problem it is necessary to apply the Snell Law. With which the angles of refraction and incidence on two materials with a determined index of refraction are described.

The equation stipulates that

Where,

= Index of refraction of each material

Angle of incidence or Angle of Reflection

Angle of refraction

Our values are given as,

Index of refraction of water

Replacing we have that,

Therefore the angle of reflection is 20.93°