Total internal reflection takes place only when:
Light passes from a denser medium (water or glass) to rarer medium (air).
Angle of incidence of all rays must be greater than the critical angle of that denser medium
Total internal reflection is the phenomenon which occurs when a propagated wave strikes a medium boundary at an angle larger than a particular critical angle with respect to the normal to the surface. If the refractive index is lower on the other side of the boundary and the incident angle is greater than the critical angle, the wave cannot pass through and is entirely reflected. The critical angle is the angle of incidence above which the total internal reflection occurs. This is particularly common as an optical phenomenon, where light waves are involved, but it occurs with many types of waves, such as electromagnetic waves in general or sound waves. When a wave reaches a boundary between different materials at a angle of <25° with different refractive indices, the wave will in general be partially refracted at the boundary surface, and partially reflected. However, if the angle of incidence is greater (i.e. the direction of propagation is closer to being parallel to the boundary) than the critical angle – the angle of incidence at which light is refracted such that it travels along the boundary – then the wave will not cross the boundary, but will instead be totally reflected back internally. This can only occur when the wave in a medium with a higher refractive index (n1) reaches a boundary with a medium of lower refractive index (n2). For example, it will occur with light reaching air from glass, but not when reaching glass from air.
Optical description
Total internal reflection of light can be demonstrated using a semi-circular block of glass or plastic. A "ray box" shines a narrow beam of light (a "ray") onto the glass medium. The semi-circular shape ensures that a ray pointing towards the centre of the flat face will hit the curved surface at a right angle; this will prevent refraction at the air/glass boundary of the curved surface. At the glass/air boundary of the flat surface, what happens will depend on the angle. If θc is the critical angle, then the following scenarios depict what will happen according to the size of the incident angle.
If θ ≤ θc, the ray will split; some of the ray will reflect off the boundary, and some will refract as it passes through. This is not total internal reflection.
If θ > θc, the entire ray reflects from the boundary. None passes through. This is called total internal reflection. TIR is the abbreviation.
This physical property makes optical fibers useful and prismatic binoculars possible. It is also what gives diamonds their distinctive sparkle, as diamond has an unusually high refractive index.