>>7976381
White light is actually made up of several wavelengths of light. The angle of refraction through the glass is dependent on the wavelength of light, so different wavelengths get refracted differently. This occurs because the material absorbs some of the light's energy and slows it down (this is a simplification).

>>7976437
Yes I know that, but how is it possible that the prism absorbs the light and slows it down, is it because of the photons in the light or?

>>7976455
You don't know about refraction? Le Google

>>7976437
>This occurs because the material absorbs some of the light's energy and slows it down

That is not true. It doesn't lose any energy.

>>7976455
Just the density of the medium.

What is the interaction on a sub-atomic particle level. How do the photons interact with the prism's density / absorption (absorb? does it lose 'energy')?

>>7976467
It does lose some energy through scattering. But most of it goes back into the light wave because the absorption of the energy by atoms of the material causes their EM fields to oscillate. The end result is that the light wave doesn't lose much energy but it's wavelength is now shorter because of the oscillation. This is why passing through the material causes the phase velocity to decrease.

>>7976478
Forget about photons for now. Light behaves both as a wave and a particle depending on who's looking. It's easier to picture this if you think of it was a wave.

So, white light is made up of all colors. Each color of light has its own wavelength/energy level. The red part of the spectrum is the lowest energy/longest wavelength. The blue end is the highest energy/shortest wavelength.

Having different energy levels means some colors can be redirected more dramatically than others.

>>7976478


Light is an electromagnetic wave. The electric field oscillates back and forth, which causes a magnetic field to oscillate back and forth, which cause an electric field to oscillate back and forth, etc. In this way it travels through space, basically using itself as a medium.

A prism is made up of atoms, which are made up of particles that have charge and can therefore be accelerated by electromagnetic fields, and which also can therefore produce their own EM fields when they move. These in turn cause constructive and destructive interference with the original wave.

The light also interacts with ITSELF as the wave takes different paths through the material, again causing interference.

These waves all added together also take the form of a wave, but with a velocity slower than the component waves (which all move at c). How much slower depends on the frequency of the wave to begin with, so light made up of different frequencies gets split up.

No, it doesn't lose energy. When the light emerges from the other side of the prism, it continues moving at c.

>>7976511
Thank you a lot ^^ helped me understand the basics to mid range difficulty very easy

9/11 would bang