Examples of Investigation and Measurement

Calibration and measurement of several liquids
With liquids of known refraction indices the apparatus will be calibrated. Therefore the shadow line of the beam is observed on a screen with a scale. Liquids like water, acetone or glycerol are used for a first measurement. The values of the indices are compared to values found in literature and an estimation of the reliability can be done.

Measurement of solid materials
In the same way refraction indices of solid materials like glasses and crystals can be determined. For these measurements the material should have at least one plain and polished surface.

Measurement of solved sugar solutions
First measurements on sugar solutions with different concentrations of known values will be performed. In the next step the refraction index of a solution with an unknown concentration is measured. Through comparison with the series of measurements the concentration can be deduced.