Total external reflection

About: Total external reflection is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 829 publications have been published within this topic receiving 22213 citations.

Multiple Reflection From Isotropic Chiral Media and the Enhancement of Chiral Asymmetry

Abstract: Multiple reflection of light at the interface of an isotropic chiral medium (either transparent or absorbing) and a transparent achiral dielectric is studied as a function of angle of incidence and number of reflections to ascertain whether there is an enhancement (with respect to single-pass reflection) of (i) the difference in reflected left and right circularly polarized waves, and (ii) the ellipticity of reflected linearly polarized waves. It is shown that for ordinary reflection, where the mean refractive index n of the chiral medium is greate than the refractive index no of the incident medium, multiple reflection does not lead to a significant enhancement. However, in the vicinity of total reflection (no > n) the chiral asymmetries resulting from N reflections are significantly greater than those for one reflection; at critical angle the enhancement is approximately by a factor N.

Lattice‐parameter‐difference measurement of heteroepitaxial structures by means of extremely asymmetrical Bragg diffraction

Abstract: The sensitivity of measurements of the lattice-parameter difference in monocrystalline heterostructures can be enhanced by use of an extremely asymmetrical diffraction geometry. If the angle of incidence is somewhat higher than the critical angle for total external reflection, the Bragg peak is shifted from the position calculated by kinematic theory. The amount of shift depends on the angle of incidence as well as on the mass density of the material used. For heteroepitaxic structures both the layer and the substrate peaks are shifted but by different amounts. Therefore it becomes possible to characterize layers of totally lattice-matched structures also.

Protective device for selectively reflecting high-intensity light over a broad spectral bandwidth

Abstract: A protective device designed to protect eyes and sensitive photodetectors from high-intensity light over a broad spectral bandwidth while permitting low-intensity and ambient light to be transmitted thereto. In a first embodiment, the device comprises a stack of nonlinear materials having the same linear index of refraction but alternating between a relatively high nonlinear index of refraction and a relatively low nonlinear index of refraction. The respective optical thicknesses of the nonlinear materials are unordered. In a second embodiment, the device comprises a stack of nonlinear materials having the same linear index of refraction and the same optical thickness of a one-half wavelength but unordered nonlinear indices of refraction. In a third embodiment, the device comprises a stack of nonlinear materials having linear indices of refraction alternating between a relatively high linear index of refraction and a relatively low index of refraction and nonlinear indices of refraction which are unordered. The respective optical thicknesses of the nonlinear materials are designed so that the materials are optimally transmissive in the linear domain. In a fourth embodiment, the device comprises a stack of nonlinear materials having the same linear index of refraction but unordered optical thicknesses and nonlinear indices of refraction.