2007-04-13 22:06:34 · 15 answers · asked by Joanne Hunter (Jo) 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
reflection i understand - but how is the mirror made to perfectly reflect?!
even water is not as good!
thanks
2007-04-15 23:14:51 · update #1
Reflection
2007-04-13 22:09:23 · answer #1 · answered by lucasone 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mirrors are truly weird quantum mechanical devices. "Everybody knows" that light bounces off a mirror at the same angle that it hits it (the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection) and everybody is wrong. Light actually bounces off every point on the mirror and "explores" every possible route. The key point is that most of these routes cancel each other out to leave the route where the travel time is least and that is the classical route that "everybody knows".
You might think that because all the other routes cancel out they don't matter - that they're just a trick, but they do matter. Here's why.
It is possible to cover up a mirror so that light can't take the shortest route. You'd think the mirror wouldn't reflect, and you'd be right because the paths available to the light would all cancel out, BUT, if you scratch away lines on this piece of mirror you can remove some of the paths available to the light. Now all the paths can't cancel out so the mirror should reflect - and it does !! So now you have a mirror that is mostly covered up leaving only a tiny piece in the "wrong" place to "reflect" and half of that tiny area is scratched away and yet light still reflects off it !. Mirrors are truly weird.
Perhaps I haven't explained this very well - mirrors are rather complicated (!)- so if you want a much clearer and detailed explanation try the sources below.
2007-04-14 00:13:16 · answer #2 · answered by black sheep 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is an angle of reflection and and angle of something else. Damn I can't remember but these angles should be exactly the same on either side of the reflection, that is why an image in a mirror looks exactly the same.
2007-04-14 04:43:37 · answer #3 · answered by Nelly-The-Elephant 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They have a perfectly flat and smooth surface, which means that it can reflect.
The reason you cannot see your reflection on paper for example is because it has a rough surface. So all the light rays which hit it are reflected in many different directions
2007-04-13 22:51:07 · answer #4 · answered by muhammaddarwish 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The reflecting surface is generally a good electrical conductor that shorts out (zeros) any electric field at its surface. For an electromagnetic wave with normal incidence, zero field at the surface corresponds to a superposition of the incident wave and one propogating in the opposite direction. That's the reflected wave. If the wave is not normal, the zero'ing superposed wave has an angle of incidence equal to the angle of reflection.
2007-04-14 06:52:45 · answer #5 · answered by Dr. R 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
They reflect the image directly in front of them
2007-04-13 22:09:19 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The answer referring to Richard Feynmann is the best theory about at the moment. Incidentally it is not the same photon coming back as the one that hits the mirror. If you are interested watch these lectures. Feynmann on QED in New Zealand.
http://www.fotuva.org/online/QEDinNZ.htm
2007-04-14 13:15:53 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
They reflect the object's image. This is in respond to a call from the ugly sisters in children's story books when they wanted to know who is the fairest of all!! To me Cinderella was definitely the nicest person but who am I to air my opinions in public?
2007-04-14 11:15:15 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
work on the principle of reflection
2007-04-14 05:16:25 · answer #9 · answered by Deranged Soul.. 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they just reflect light.
2007-04-13 22:14:02 · answer #10 · answered by Nick 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋