Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Wollaston prism
The Wollaston prism is a useful optical device, invented by William Hyde Wollaston, that manipulates polarized light. It separates randomly polarized or unpolarized incoming light into two orthogonal, linearly polarized outgoing beams.
The Wollaston prism consists of two orthogonal calcite prisms, cemented together on their base to form two right triangle prisms with perpendicular optic axes. Outgoing light beams diverge from the prism, giving two polarized rays, with the angle of divergence determined by the prisms' wedge angle and the wavelength of the light. Commercial prisms are available with divergence angles from 15° to about 45°.
10-26-2009 08:16:03
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details