Refraction is the change in direction of a wave due to a change in its speed. This is most commonly observed when a wave passes from one medium to another at an angle.
If a light wave passes from a less dense medium in which it travels slow into a medium in which it travels fast, then the light wave will refract away from the normal. In such a case, the refracted ray will be farther from the normal line than the incident ray. On the other hand, if a light wave passes from a denser medium in which it travels fast into a medium in which it travels slow, then the light wave will refract towards the normal. In such a case, the refracted ray will be closer to the normal line than the incident ray is.
reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refraction
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