Our Index of Refraction Calculator helps you quickly find the refractive index (n₂) of a second medium. By inputting the index of the first medium (n₁) and both the angle of incidence (θ₁) and refraction (θ₂), this tool applies Snell's Law to determine how light bends, revealing the optical density of various materials for physics and optics studies.
Formula:
Snell's Law Formula
The Index of Refraction Calculator utilizes Snell's Law, which describes the relationship between the angles of incidence and refraction when light passes through a boundary between two different isotropic media, and the refractive indices of those media.
The formula for calculating an unknown index of refraction (n2) is:
n2 = n1 * sin(θ1) / sin(θ2)
- n1: Index of refraction of the first medium (dimensionless)
- θ1 (theta 1): Angle of incidence (in degrees)
- θ2 (theta 2): Angle of refraction (in degrees)
- n2: Index of refraction of the second medium (dimensionless)