Optics Forum

Threads

Undergrad Optics: Huygens' principle and bending of light

  • kent davidge
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2

Graduate How do scatterers closer than wavelength affect reflection?

  • Tinaaaaaa
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Could you focus light from Sol's corona?

  • negativzero
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Estimating incident power on beamsplitter from reflected measurement

  • nordmoon
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Tangential velocity in polar coordinates

  • marksyncm
  • · Replies 8 ·
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8

Graduate Does light move, or does space and time move past light?

  • Troymteal
  • · Replies 14 ·
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14

High School Can light be stopped in air at a specific distance?

  • Ramazan Duzgun
  • · Replies 12 ·
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12

High School Can we see radio waves or other invisible waves with our eyes?

  • Akshaya dhakal
  • · Replies 8 ·
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8

Graduate Phase shift and circular polarization

  • boxfullofvacuumtubes
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Why does light become polarized at Brewster's angle?

  • Wrichik Basu
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Graduate Understanding a Generalization of Snell's Law

  • Jett
  • · Replies 19 ·
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19

Graduate Geometric Optics Approximation - validity

  • lightarrow
  • · Replies 19 ·
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19

Undergrad Light propagation in water -- Is the scattering Rayleigh scattering?

  • itoero
  • · Replies 22 ·
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22

Undergrad Absorbance of a finite waveband

  • roam
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

Undergrad Angle relationships of a blazed diffraction grating

  • NihalRi
  • · Replies 8 ·
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8

Graduate Optics Experiment involving transmission through a gel and a sphere

  • blizzardof96
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Undergrad Why do black holes absorb photons if light is massless?

  • Muhammad Valent
  • · Replies 10 ·
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10

Undergrad Geometric mean versus arithmetic mean

  • roam
  • · Replies 7 ·
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7

Undergrad How to Derive Malus' Law for Two Polarizers Using Integrals?

  • Arman777
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Undergrad Why does light bend at different speeds in different media?

  • jha192001
  • · Replies 16 ·
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16

Undergrad How to calculate the energy in gamma photons

  • Amanuel
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Graduate Scattering from lossy medium whose refractive index is unity

  • Swamp Thing
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Undergrad Rayleigh Scattering calculation

  • nmsurobert
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Transmission of blue light through ceramics and surface roughness effects

  • ccdani
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Relative eye safety of infrared and ultraviolet lasers

  • roam
  • · Replies 11 ·
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11

Undergrad How does ultraviolet photography (fluorescence) work?

  • Graeme M
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Atmospheric hazing on an infinite plane

  • Ryan_m_b
  • · Replies 10 ·
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10

Undergrad Radial Acceleration in Polar/Cylindrical Coordinates

  • BrandonUSC
  • · Replies 10 ·
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10

Undergrad Calculate the Efficiency of a Winston Cone

  • Christofer Br
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Undergrad Why is the number of wavelets in a slit = slit length / lambda

  • DoobleD
  • · Replies 25 ·
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25

Graduate Nonlinear Optics: third-order susceptibility

  • IcedCoffee
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Graduate What happens to waves with different polarizations in a wire grid polarizer?

  • Pushoam
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Undergrad Does atmospheric refraction depend on temperature, distance, and object shape?

  • kmcguir
  • · Replies 9 ·
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9

Undergrad Fuel cell mass flow rate magnitudes

  • antigen
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Undergrad Do Blue Light Filters Actually Work?

  • JFS321
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Physics of Light/Infrared for Solar Stills Research

  • Greenybwa
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Graduate Intensity of a Gaussian laser beam

  • roam
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad A one light-year circuit of christmas lights

  • Jetro
  • · Replies 17 ·
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17

Undergrad How are Photons massless? How can a particle have no Mass?

  • AlvisPrabhu
  • · Replies 21 ·
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21

Undergrad Average number of photons in a atom at a given temprature

  • Bruce Haawkins
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

Graduate Classically communicate information faster then light?

  • Philip Land
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Undergrad Do images of on-axis objects always form on the optical axis?

  • Zubair Ahmad
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Graduate How do microwave plasmas work?

  • sw2244
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Light wavelength transmission through ice

  • Matt Phelps
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Can Gamma Rays Be Artificially Directed?

  • Tauneu
  • · Replies 10 ·
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10

Undergrad Is light's travel time always minimum between two points?

  • Zubair Ahmad
  • · Replies 9 ·
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9

Graduate Do Photons Have Mass and How Do They Interact in LASERs?

  • Curious1
  • · Replies 17 ·
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17

Graduate Can Colder Bodies Send Photons to Hotter Ones?

  • Alan Tomalty
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

High School Does Light Travel Through Fiber Optic Cable Generate EMF?

  • Sayagain
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad How is photomultiplier tube sensitivity measured?

  • lcr2139
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Mass of Photon: What's the Proper Explanation?

  • swampwiz
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Undergrad Why is the speed of light what it is?

  • Johnnyallen
  • · Replies 60 ·
3
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Undergrad Formal term for cross-polarization effect

  • nrb
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

High School In night vision equipment, how does 'information' transfer?

  • Calconceptofnumber1
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Can I get different frequencies from He-Ne Laser ?

  • Asmaa
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Undergrad Can Infrared Photons Enter Nanotubes?

  • Bruce Haawkins
  • · Replies 8 ·
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8

Graduate Calculate polarization energy over a set of cuboids

  • Glxblt76
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Why is a state with large number of photons not classical?

  • Phys12
  • · Replies 10 ·
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10

Graduate Destructive interference for distance-specific illumination?

  • timelessmidgen
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Graduate Light beam propulsion without lasers?

  • RobertGC
  • · Replies 25 ·
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25

Undergrad Physics of colors and our perception

  • Vrbic
  • · Replies 18 ·
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18

Graduate Coherence pattern of HeNe laser in interferometer

  • Marisa5
  • · Replies 17 ·
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17

Graduate Can mirrors selectively reflect visible light while transmitting gamma and X-rays?

  • Sam Phillips
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Are plane waves actually spherical waves at large distance?

  • Arup Biswas
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Undergrad What is the real definition of foot-candle?

  • Vector1962
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

High School How do electromagnetic waves from the sun vary in wavelength?

  • revv
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Questions about neutrinos compared to the nature of light

  • bahamagreen
  • · Replies 9 ·
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9

Undergrad Why do waves diffract, really?

  • yeet
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Infrared thermometry remote sensing

  • ag123
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Why does normal force on a submerged solid increase when the liquid is removed?

  • Weam Abou Hamdan
  • · Replies 22 ·
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22

Undergrad Do we "lose" information when viewing objects at a distance?

  • Josh S
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

Undergrad Wave / particle duality of light

  • cliffhanley203
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Graduate Polarization of light using Mueller matrix

  • Nur Ziadah
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

Graduate Uncertainty and the speed of light?

  • Sandeep T S
  • · Replies 11 ·
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11

High School Difference between real and virtual objects? (optics)

  • Ravik Rocha
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

High School Materials that allow IR or UV light to pass through?

  • jms4
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Can we use the momentum of light to propagate spacecrafts in space?

  • Hrithik mudaliar
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Undergrad On board a laser powered solar sail

  • NineNinjas911
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

Undergrad Can you ionize metal with photons?

  • IAmAnthony
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Undergrad What is the unit of measurement in this X-Ray?

  • Gary_T2018
  • · Replies 47 ·
2
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47

High School Can Cameras Outperform Human Eyes in Perception?

  • José Ricardo
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

High School Have you heard of the mirage effect on the sea?

  • Timothy Schablin
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

Graduate Intensity characterization of laser pulses

  • LuL
  • · Replies 3 ·
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3

High School How can we visualize the movement of Photons on the water?

  • Doruk Y
  • · Replies 11 ·
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11

Graduate How to calculate the number of photons

  • Buzz Bloom
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Nonlinear Optics - Pockels effect

  • SchroedingersLion
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate Can the speed of light be constant and absolute?

  • Matthew Bristow
  • · Replies 29 ·
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29

Undergrad Why does the sun affect radio wave propagation?

  • Tech2025
  • · Replies 12 ·
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12

High School Applying Snell's law to plane and curved surfaces

  • Lukejohn
  • · Replies 2 ·
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2

Graduate How to concentrate white light in a very small point?

  • CristianHernandez
  • · Replies 4 ·
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4

High School How does a Ruhmkorf coil produce radio waves?

  • Jigga
  • · Replies 1 ·
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1

Graduate Why is the refractive index for red lower than for blue?

  • spareine
  • · Replies 7 ·
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7

Undergrad IR camera 1550 nm IR light source

  • btb4198
  • · Replies 7 ·
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7

Graduate Why do reflectance spectra have values over 100%?

  • Guilherme Franco
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Graduate Interference puzzle - Where does the energy go?

  • Derek P
  • · Replies 53 ·
2
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53

Graduate The reality of photons (real vs virtual etc)

  • girts
  • · Replies 5 ·
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5

Undergrad Why does a laser reflect off a mirror but fire doesn't?

  • Raj Harsh
  • · Replies 26 ·
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26

Graduate Is there a limit to how steep the refractive index gradient can be

  • Antonij
  • · Replies 6 ·
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6

Graduate Parabolic shape configuration's effect on photon volume?

  • Steven Bolgiano
  • · Replies 21 ·
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21

Undergrad Why the Frequency of Light Does Not Change Through a Medium

  • emh01
  • · Replies 9 ·
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9