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Physics 20 Online
OpenStudy (anonymous):

Why is there a 90 degree phase change when light reflects off a mirror, for example in lloyds mirror?

OpenStudy (anonymous):

180 degrees i mean

OpenStudy (anonymous):

because just like waves on a string, when a wave moves from a lower index of refraction to a higher one, your phase will flip. Again, you can check by making a wave with a string against a wall. However, when moving from lower higher index to lower index, it doesn't. Light is electromagnetic wave, which also follows the wave equation

OpenStudy (anonymous):

When light from the rarer medium to the denser medium gets reflected from the denser medium then it introduces a phase change of pi radians in the reflected light.

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