What is the term for the bending of a wave as it passes at an angle from one medium to another?

The bending of a wave as it passes at an angle from one medium to another is termed refraction. This phenomenon occurs because waves travel at different speeds in different media. When a wave enters a new medium at an angle, its speed changes, which causes the direction of the wave to bend.

For example, when light passes from air into water, it slows down and bends towards the normal line, which is an imaginary line perpendicular to the surface at the point of entry. This principle is essential in various applications, such as lens design, optical devices, and understanding natural phenomena like rainbows.

The other terms listed do not describe this behavior: reflection involves the bouncing back of waves when they hit a barrier, transmission refers to the passing of waves through a medium, and interference involves the interaction of two or more waves meeting in a given space. Understanding refraction is crucial for grasping how waves propagate in different environments and influences their practical applications in physics.