The splitting of different colours of light in a prism is

The splitting of different colours of light in a prism is : 

(1) Reflection of light 

(2) Dispersion of light 

(3) Diffraction of light 

(4) Refraction of light 


Answer: (2) The refractive index of many materials (such as glass) varies with the wavelength or colour of the light used, a phenomenon is known as dispersion. This causes the light of different colours to be refracted differently and to leave the prism at different angles, creating an effect similar to a rainbow. In optics, dispersion is the phenomenon in which the phase velocity of a wave depends on its frequency, or alternatively when the group velocity depends on the frequency. Media having such a property are termed dispersive media. Dispersion is sometimes called chromatic dispersion to emphasize its wavelength-dependent nature, or group-velocity dispersion (GVD) to emphasize the role of the group.

The splitting of different colours of light in a prism is :   (1) Reflection of light   (2) Dispersion of light   (3) Diffraction of light   (4) Refraction of light


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