What is the physical phenomenon underlying the propagation of light signals through optical fibers over long distances with minimal signal loss?

💡 Solution & Explanation

Optical fibers operate on the principle of total internal reflection, where light traveling through a high-refractive-index core strikes the boundary with a lower-refractive-index cladding at an angle exceeding the critical angle, causing it to bounce completely back into the core without refraction loss. This enables efficient long-distance telecommunication data transmission. Distractors involving diffraction or polarization describe separate wave properties unrelated to guiding light inside dielectric cylinders. Snell's law determines the critical angle for any given pair of optical media.