Question

White light gets split into different colours when it passes through a prism. Why? What is this phenomena called? ​

Answer 1

Dear student,
The dispersion of light is the phenomenon of splitting of a beam of white light into its seven constituent colours when a beam of white light passes through the interface between air and a denser medium, such as glass or water. Light travels more slowly in a denser medium, so it changes direction – or refracts – when it passes through the interface. White light is a mixture of all the wavelengths of light, and each wavelength refracts at a slightly different angle. Therefore, when the beam emerges from the denser medium, it has been split into its component wavelengths. The ones you can see form the familiar rainbow.

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