Angle of Refraction Calculator (Snell's Law)

Your details

The medium the light ray starts in. Choosing a preset fills n1 automatically.
Index of refraction of the incident medium. Must be >= 1.
The medium the light ray enters. Choosing a preset fills n2 automatically.
Index of refraction of the refracted medium. Must be >= 1.
The angle between the incoming light ray and the normal to the surface, in degrees (0 to 90).
deg
Angle of refractionRefraction Occurs
27.73deg

Angle between the refracted ray and the normal on the transmitted side

Brewster angle56.65deg
Total internal reflectionNo - light refracts normally
Speed ratio v1/v21.5195
Wavelength ratio lambda1/lambda21.5195
27.73 deg
Small refraction<30Moderate refraction30-60Grazing / TIR zone60+

Light refracts from 45.0 deg to 27.73 deg.

  • Light bends toward the normal (smaller exit angle) because it is entering a denser medium (n2 1.52 > n1 1.0003).
  • At the Brewster angle (56.65 deg) the reflected beam would be completely polarized horizontally.

Next stepTo explore how the refracted angle changes across incidence angles, note the chart below which plots theta2 vs theta1.

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