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  • Explain how Corpuscular theory predicts the speed of light in a medium, say, water, to be greater than the speed of light in vacuum. Is the prediction confirmed by experimental determination of the speed of light in water ? If not, which alternative pictu

Q10.12  Explain how corpuscular theory predicts the speed of light in a medium, say, water, to be greater than the speed of light in vacuum. Is the prediction confirmed by experimental determination of the speed of light in water? If not, which alternative picture of light is consistent with experiment?

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According to corpuscular theory, when corpuscle of the light goes from rare medium to denser medium, the component of their velocity along the surface of the interface remains the same.

So we can write

v_1sini=v_2sinr

\frac{v_2}{v_1}=\frac{sini}{sinr}=\mu

As \mu>1,

v_2>v_1

That is, light should be faster in dense medium than in rare medium. This is the opposite of what we see experimentally.

Huygens wave theory predicts that light is faster in a rare medium, which matches with our experimental observation.

Posted by

Pankaj Sanodiya

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