critical angle

In geometric optics, at a refractive boundary, the smallest angle of incidence at which total internal reflection occurs. Note 1: The angle of incidence is measured with respect to the normal at the refractive boundary. Note 2: The critical angle is given by where θ_c is the critical angle, n₁ is the refractive index of the less dense medium, and n₂ is the refractive index of the denser medium. Note 3: The incident ray is in the denser medium. Note 4: If the incident ray is precisely at the critical angle, the refracted ray is tangent to the boundary at the point of incidence.