A ray of light bends towards the normal while travelling from medium A to medium B. Which of the following statements is/ are correct:

(A) Medium A is optically denser than medium B.

(B) Speed of light is more in medium A than medium B.

(C) Refractive index of medium B is more than refractive index of medium A.

The correct answer is Both B and C.

Key Points

• When a wave travels from one medium to another, it bends, which is known as refraction.
• If the light is travelling from a rarer medium to a denser medium, the light will get refracted towards the normal while if the light is travelling from a denser medium to a rarer medium, the light will get refracted away from the normal.
• When a ray of light bends towards the normal while travelling from a rarer to a denser medium, the speed of light is more in a rarer medium than a denser medium and the refractive index of a denser medium is more than the refractive index of a rarer medium.​

Additional Information

• Dispersion is the process by which white light separates into the colours that make up its spectrum (in order VIBGYOR) when it passes through a glass prism.
• When light travels through one medium, such as air or a glass of water, it is partially absorbed by the medium's particles before radiating in a certain direction afterwards. This is called the scattering of light. The light's wavelength and the size of the scattered particles both affect the scattered light intensity.
• When light beams move from a denser medium to one that is considerably less dense, total internal reflection occur.
• Total internal reflections occur when the angle of incidence is greater than the critical angle.