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Question
why does white light split into a spectrum of colors through a prism? due to different refraction degrees of different wavelengths due to constant frequency of all colors because of the prisms color properties
White light is a combination of different - wavelength lights. When it passes through a prism, different - wavelength lights have different refractive indices (degrees of refraction) in the prism material. According to Snell's law \(n_1\sin\theta_1 = n_2\sin\theta_2\), where \(n\) is the refractive index and \(\theta\) is the angle of incidence or refraction. Since the refractive index \(n\) is a function of wavelength \(\lambda\) for a given medium (prism), different wavelengths will refract at different angles. This causes the white light to split into a spectrum of colors.
The option “Due to constant frequency of all colors” is incorrect because different colors (wavelengths) in white light have different frequencies (\(c=\lambda f\), where \(c\) is the speed of light in vacuum, \(\lambda\) is the wavelength and \(f\) is the frequency). The option “Because of the prism’s color properties” is too vague. The key lies in the different refractive indices (related to wavelength - dependent refraction) rather than some general “color properties” of the prism.
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Due to different refraction degrees of different wavelengths.