Using the Pickering Polarimeter Today

• Autores: Jr. Thomas B. Greenslade
• Localización: The Physics Teacher, ISSN 0031-921X, Vol. 62, Nº. 2, 2024, págs. 130-131
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The polarimeter is a device for viewing optically active material that is held between two crossed polarizing filters. For many years, I made my own version of this to allow my entire class to see the effects. A sheet of Polaroid was laid on the top surface of an overhead projector. A second sheet was held a short distance above the first one, and the object to be studied was placed between the two sheets.1 The original polarimeter was described in 1873 by William C. Pickering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.2 Later on in this note, I will discuss his design, and also Pickering’s widely used book on experimental techniques for undergraduate physics instruction.