or normal) and "parallel" (parallel to the plane of incidence).

Although the reflection and transmission are dependent on polarization, at normal incidence there is no distinction between them so all polarization states are governed by a single set of Fresnel coefficients (and another special case is mentioned below in which that is true).

Configuration

In the diagram, an incident plane wave in the direction of the ray strikes the interface between two media of refractive indices

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