Bending Light
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Original Sim and Translations |
About
Topics
- Snell's Law
- Refraction
- Reflection
- Optics
- Prisms
- Lenses
- Light
Description
Explore bending of light between two media with different indices of refraction. See how changing from air to water to glass changes the bending angle. Play with prisms of different shapes and make rainbows.
Sample Learning Goals
- Explain how light bends at the interface between two media and what determines the angle.
- Apply Snell’s law to a laser beam incident on the interface between media.
- Describe how the speed and wavelength of light changes in different media.
- Describe the effect of changing wavelength on the angle of refraction.
- Explain how a prism creates a rainbow.
For Teachers
Teacher Tips
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Overview of sim controls, model simplifications, and insights into student thinking ( PDF ). |
Teacher-Submitted Activities
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Authors | Level | Type |
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| Wave unit (Inquiry Based) |
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Trish Loeblein | HS UG-Intro |
Demo Lab |
| How do PhET simulations fit in my middle school program? |
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Sarah Borenstein | MS | Other | |
| Alignment of PhET sims with NGSS |
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Trish Loeblein | HS | Other | |
| PhET Sims Aligned to the Chemistry Curriculum |
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Julia Chamberlain | UG-Intro HS |
Other | |
| Refraction and Snell's Law Lab | Kristin Michalski | HS | Lab | ||
| Wave Refraction | Simon Lees | HS | Guided Lab HW |
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| Determining Speed and Intensity of Light during Refraction | Simon Lees | HS | Guided Lab HW |
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| Reflection in a plane surface | Simon Lees | HS | Guided HW Lab |
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| MS and HS TEK to Sim Alignment | Elyse Zimmer | MS HS |
Other | ||
| Bending Light Lab! | Jamie Schoenberger | MS | Lab Guided |
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| Bending Light Student Worksheet | Lucy Kulbago | HS MS |
Guided Lab |
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| Medir la velocidad de la luz. | Patricia Abdel Rahim | UG-Intro | Lab |
Browse more activities.
Translations
Related Simulations
Software Requirements
| Windows 7+ | Mac OS 10.7+ | iPad and iPad Mini with iOS | Chromebook with Chrome OS |
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Internet Explorer 10+ latest versions of Chrome and Firefox
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Safari 6.1 and up latest versions of Chrome and Firefox
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latest version of Safari
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latest version of Chrome
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Credits
| Design Team | Third-party Libraries | Thanks To |
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