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A ray diagram showing the refraction (change in direction) of a ray of light passing from one material to another. In the first material light moves with speed v_1, and in the second material it moves with speed v_2. The ray strikes the interface between the two materials at an angle theta_1 from the “normal” line perpendicular to the interface at the point of incidence. When it moves into the second material it makes an angle theta_2 with respect to this line. The angle is determined by Snell’s Law: (sin theta_1) / v_1 = (sin theta_2) / v_2

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A ray diagram showing the refraction (change in direction) of a ray of light passing from one material to another. In the first material light moves with speed v_1, and in the second material it moves with speed v_2. The ray strikes the interface between the two materials at an angle theta_1 from the “normal” line perpendicular to the interface at the point of incidence. When it moves into the second material it makes an angle theta_2 with respect to this line. The angle is determined by Snell’s Law: (sin theta_1) / v_1 = (sin theta_2) / v_2
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/111/143/296/165/749/598/original/6b1eb76f9b02869b.jpeg

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Robert McNees (mcnees@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 28-Sep-2023 14:41:59 UTC Robert McNees
in reply to

Maupertuis originally formulated his principle to explain the motion of light, arguing that the integral of its velocity along the path it follows is minimized.
This allowed him to recover Snell's Law for the refraction of light as it passes between different materials.

In conversation about a year ago from mastodon.social permalink