Article
Supernumerary Spacing of Rainbows Produced by an Elliptical-Cross-Section Cylinder. II. Experiment
Applied Optics
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
5-20-2001
Disciplines
Abstract
We measured the supernumerary spacing parameter of the first- and second-order rainbows of two glass rods, each having an approximately elliptical cross section, as a function of the rod's rotation angle. We attribute large fluctuations in the supernumerary spacing parameter to small local inhomogeneities in the rod's refractive index. The low-pass filtered first-order rainbow experimental data agree with the prediction of ray-tracing-wave-front modeling to within a few percent, and the second-order rainbow data exhibit additional effects that are due to rod nonellipticity. (C) 2001 Optical Society of America.
DOI
10.1364/AO.40.002535
Version
Publisher's PDF
Publisher's Statement
This paper was published in Applied Optics and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/ao/abstract.cfm?URI=ao-40-15-2535. Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.
Citation Information
Adler, Charles L., David Phipps, Kirk W. Saunders, Justin K. Nash, and James A. Lock. "Supernumerary Spacing of Rainbows Produced by an Elliptical-Cross-Section Cylinder. II. Experiment." Applied Optics 40 (2001): 2535-2545.