isa notes
This experiment seeks to demonstrate the law of reflection - the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection when measured from the normal.
Equipment
Single slit raybox with power supply
Paper
Ruler
Protractor
Sharp Pencil
Plane mirror
Support for mirror (e.g. wooden block with a groove in, or plasticine)
Method
Draw a line on the paper. Place the mirror on the line and support it so it does not move.
Shine the beam from the raybox towards the mirror. Use the pencil to carefully mark two dots in the centre of the incident and reflected rays.
Move the mirror to one side and use the ruler to join the dots to show the complete path of the ray. Add arrows so you know which direction the ray travelled.
At the point where the ray reflects from the mirror add a line perpendicular to the mirrors surface - this is the normal line.
Use the protractor measure the angle between the normal and the incident ray, and the normal and the reflected ray.
Note these angles in a table and then repeat the experiment for at least three more different angles.
Care should be taken when moving the raybox as those which use an incandescent bulb can get hot to the touch.
Results
You should find that the results show that the incident angle and reflected angle are equal. Your results may be a little out, due to errors introduced with how carefully you marked the path, the normal and measured the angle.
Hypothesis – The angle of reflection will always be the same as the angle of incidence.
Apparatus and Materials –
Mirror
Light Box
Power Pack
Paper
Ruler
Protractor
Pencil Safety –
- Be careful not to touch the light box as it will be hot.
- Don’t put the voltage above 12.
Method –
1. Set up the Power pack by plugging it into the wall.
2. Plug the light box into the power pack using the yellow sockets
3. Slide the black insert into the end of the power pack so that the single slit end is at the bottom and one
Equipment
Single slit raybox with power supply
Paper
Ruler
Protractor
Sharp Pencil
Plane mirror
Support for mirror (e.g. wooden block with a groove in, or plasticine)
Method
Draw a line on the paper. Place the mirror on the line and support it so it does not move.
Shine the beam from the raybox towards the mirror. Use the pencil to carefully mark two dots in the centre of the incident and reflected rays.
Move the mirror to one side and use the ruler to join the dots to show the complete path of the ray. Add arrows so you know which direction the ray travelled.
At the point where the ray reflects from the mirror add a line perpendicular to the mirrors surface - this is the normal line.
Use the protractor measure the angle between the normal and the incident ray, and the normal and the reflected ray.
Note these angles in a table and then repeat the experiment for at least three more different angles.
Care should be taken when moving the raybox as those which use an incandescent bulb can get hot to the touch.
Results
You should find that the results show that the incident angle and reflected angle are equal. Your results may be a little out, due to errors introduced with how carefully you marked the path, the normal and measured the angle.
Hypothesis – The angle of reflection will always be the same as the angle of incidence.
Apparatus and Materials –
Mirror
Light Box
Power Pack
Paper
Ruler
Protractor
Pencil Safety –
- Be careful not to touch the light box as it will be hot.
- Don’t put the voltage above 12.
Method –
1. Set up the Power pack by plugging it into the wall.
2. Plug the light box into the power pack using the yellow sockets
3. Slide the black insert into the end of the power pack so that the single slit end is at the bottom and one