Through our science lessons, we got to learn about refraction and total internal reflection, which takes place because 1)the incident angle is greater than critical angle 2)the incident ray is in the optically denser medium.
The critical angle is the incident angle whereby the angle of refraction is 90 degrees
After learning this, I conducted an ACE assignment on the application of total internal reflection.
1)Optical fibres
Optical fibres make use of TIR to trasmit data from one end to the other. It is made of pure glass, and transmits light from one end to the other through TIR within the fibre. Therefore, it would have the advantage of no electromagnetic interference, and therefore lesser loss of signal. It is also thin and flexible.
2)Medical equipment
Such equipment are like endoscope, colonoscope, otoscope and amnioscope. These equipment make use of TIR examine the internal organs in our body.For example, in the endoscope, it is used to examine the lungs. Hence, light is required to see. Light is transmitted through optical fibres, which provide the light source and enables the doctor to examine the lungs.
