Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-year-2-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2023/paper-1/9/a/ii/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the year 2 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2023 Paper 1 9 a ii Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
Take the fixed source and receiver to be and on the same side of the mirror, with . In the uniform medium, the Fermat principle minimizes the length through a reflection point :Its stationary equation isThe two fractions are the signed tangential components of the ray directions. Equality of their magnitudes gives , where both angles are measured from the normal vector to the mirror and lie in . Hence the law of reflection isFor uniqueness, differentiate once more:Thus is a strictly convex function, its derivative increases from to , and it has exactly one stationary point, its global minimum. Explicitly,Substitution gives , verifying the reflection angles and the existence of that unique solution. Equivalently it is the point where the line from to the mirror image crosses the mirror.
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