Study of the birefringence of quartz together

The 205020 set provides the components and supports necessary to study the birefringence of a quartz plate.

Topics covered:
- Study of a uniaxial birefringent medium
- Observation of a fringed spectrum

Principles and objectives:
The quartz crystal has two perpendicular preferred axes with different refractive indices. The waves that pass through it are decomposed on these two axes and travel at different speeds. They become out of phase when exiting the crystal.
With a polarized polychromatic source, a fringed spectrum is then created at the crystal's ouExperimentut and is then analyzed using a second polarizer. Depending on the crystal's thickness, the phase shift will be more or less significant, and the observed fringes more or less distant. Thus, by knowing the initial thickness and measuring the wavelength of the fringes, it is possible to determine the crystal's birefringence.

Composition:
▪ 1 halogen source 55 W (ref.202555)
 ▪ 2 polarizers in graduated mount (ref.202374)
 ▪ 2 adjustable slits with symmetrical opening (ref.202423)
 ▪ 1 quartz plate in mount (ref.204697)
 ▪ 1 transmission grating 300 lines/mm (ref.202342)
 ▪ 1 fixed plate on rod (ref.202670) and 1 network holder over-plate (ref.202470)
 ▪ 1 axis shift on rod (ref.202458)
 ▪ 1 lens Ø40 mm f+100 mm (ref.202274) and its mount (ref.202439)
 ▪ 1 white gridded metal screen 20x20 cm (ref.202368)
 ▪ 1 set of experiment instructions