A 45^∘ prism has an index of refraction of 1.6 . Light is...

A $45^{\circ}$ prism has an index of refraction of $1.6 .$ Light is normally incident on the left side of the prism. Does light exit the back of the prism (for example, at point $P$ )? If so, what is the angle of refraction with respect to the normal at point $P$ ? If not, what happens to the light?

A $45^{\circ}$ prism has an index of refraction of $1.6 .$ Light is normally incident on the left side of the prism. Does light exit the back of the prism (for example, at point $P$ )?
If so, what is the angle of refraction with respect to the normal at point $P$ ? If not, what happens to the light?

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Key Concepts

Total Internal Reflection

Total internal reflection occurs when light traveling in a medium with a higher index of refraction strikes the interface with a medium of lower index at an angle greater than the critical angle, resulting in all of the light being reflected back into the original medium. This phenomenon prevents light from refracting out of the denser medium.

Snell's Law

Snell's Law is the fundamental principle that describes how light bends (refracts) when passing from one medium to another with a different index of refraction. It relates the sines of the angles of incidence and refraction to the indices of refraction of the two media, and is expressed as n? sin?? = n? sin??.

Index of Refraction

The index of refraction is a measure of how much a medium slows down light compared to the speed of light in a vacuum. It is from this property that the bending of light at the interface between mediums arises, as different indices result in different light speeds inside each medium.

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