Prism of Nicol
A prism of Nicol or more simply the nicol is a Polariseur separating a luminous ray in two rays from different polarization S. It was the first type of prism polarizing the light, invented in 1828 by William Nicol of Edinburgh. It consists of a Cristal Rhomboédrique of Calcite (Iceland spar) cut with an angle of 68°, crossed according to the diagonal, then restuck using Baume of Canada.
Calcite is a birefringent material , i.e. it is characterized by two optical indices (creating the two rays) being worth 1,658 and 1,550. A total Réflexion interns intervenes on the level of the junction: one of the rays is completely reflected, the other is completely transmitted.
The prisms of Nicol were largely used in Microscopie and Polarimétrie. However, they were gradually replaced by other polarizers like the Polaroïd and the Prisme of Glan-Thompson.
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