Transcript Reflection

Reflection
Interface
 Plane waves at an interface
may be absorbed.
• Discontinuity in materials
• Different permittivity
• Scattered wavelets cancel
 Materials can be opaque or
translucent.
Backscatter
 At a discontinuity some of the
backwards scattered waves
coincide.
 This is called reflection.
• Present at all interfaces
 Reflected waves also form
rays.
Mirror Glass
 Clear materials also reflect at
an interface.
 About 4% of the light energy is
reflected at an air-glass
interface.
• Significant if one side is darker
Photo by Michael Goltz
Photo from visit-ChicagoIllinois.com
Specular Reflection
 If a surface is smooth then the
reflected rays travel in parallel.
 This is called specular
reflection.
Diffuse Reflection
 If the surface is rough then
reflected rays travel in different
directions.
 This is called diffuse reflection.
Measuring Reflection
 Geometry describes a single
ray reflected from a surface.
 The normal is a line
perpendicular to the surface at
the point the ray strikes.
 Angles are measured with
respect to the normal.
• Incident angle qi
• Reflected angle qr
Laws of Reflection
 The relationship of the angles are called the laws of
reflection.
• Incident ray, reflected ray and the normal are all in the same plane
• Angle of reflection equals the angle of incidence: θi = θr
next