What happens during total internal reflection?

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During total internal reflection, all the light that hits the boundary between two media at a certain angle is reflected back into the denser medium rather than being transmitted into the less dense medium. This phenomenon occurs when light attempts to pass from a denser medium to a less dense medium at an angle greater than the critical angle for those two media.

When the incident angle exceeds this critical angle, the refracted light would theoretically emerge into the second medium, but instead, it is entirely reflected back. This process is a key principle in applications such as optical fibers, where it allows light to travel long distances with minimal loss.

The other options do not accurately describe this phenomenon. Light being partially reflected and transmitted would indicate refraction is occurring, which contradicts the essence of total internal reflection. Similarly, light bending towards the normal line pertains to refraction laws and does not apply in the case of total internal reflection, where all light is reflected. Lastly, if light is refracted completely into the less dense medium, it suggests it is passing through the boundary, which again does not align with the conditions of total internal reflection.