What impact does increasing the angle of incidence have on the prediction of reflection and transmission?

Increasing the angle of incidence affects the predictability of reflection and transmission due to several factors determined by the principles of wave behavior, particularly in the context of ultrasound in sonography.

As the angle of incidence increases, the behavior of waves at the interface between different media changes. Specifically, when the angle of incidence approaches the critical angle, the laws of reflection and refraction (transmission) become less straightforward. At angles beyond the critical angle, total internal reflection occurs, resulting in no transmitted wave and complete reflection instead. This transition complicates the predictability because it introduces a threshold where the outcome shifts dramatically based on slight changes in the angle of incidence.

Additionally, as the angle increases, the proportion of transmitted and reflected waves can become less consistent, particularly in heterogeneous tissues found in medical imaging. This complexity in determining how much sound is reflected versus how much is transmitted makes it more challenging to predict the behavior of ultrasound waves in response to changing angles of incidence, thereby complicating the analysis of reflections and transmissions in practical applications.