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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 picture of light is consistent with experiment?

Answer»

Solution :In corpuscular (particle) picture of REFRACTION, particles of light incident from a rarer to a denser medium EXPERIENCE a force of attraction normal to the surface. This results in an INCREASE in the normal component of the VELOCITY but the component along the surface is unchanged. This means
`c sin i=v sin r or (v)/(c)=(sini)/(sinr)=n`. since `n gt 1, v gt c`.
The prediction is opposite to the experimental results `(v lt c )`. The WAVE picture of light is consistent with the experiment.


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