The Sénarmont prism is a type of polariser. It is made from two prism

Prism (optics)

In optics, a prism is a transparent optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. The exact angles between the surfaces depend on the application. The traditional geometrical shape is that of a triangular prism with a triangular base and rectangular sides, and in colloquial use...

s of a birefringent

Birefringence

Birefringence, or double refraction, is the decomposition of a ray of light into two rays when it passes through certain anisotropic materials, such as crystals of calcite or boron nitride. The effect was first described by the Danish scientist Rasmus Bartholin in 1669, who saw it in calcite...

 material such as calcite

Calcite

Calcite is a carbonate mineral and the most stable polymorph of calcium carbonate . The other polymorphs are the minerals aragonite and vaterite. Aragonite will change to calcite at 380-470°C, and vaterite is even less stable.-Properties:...

, usually cemented together. The Sénarmont prism is named after Henri Hureau de Sénarmont

Henri Hureau de Sénarmont

Henri Hureau de Sénarmont was a French mineralogist and physician. He was born at Brou, Eure-et-Loir. In the course of his career, he became engineer-in-chief of mines, and professor of mineralogy and director of studies at the École des Mines at Paris.Sénarmont was distinguished for his research...

. It is similar to the Rochon

Rochon prism

A Rochon prism is a type of polariser. It is made from two prisms of a birefringent material such as calcite, which are cemented together.The Rochon prism was invented by and is named after Abbé Alexis Marie Rochon. It is in many ways similar to the Wollaston prism, but one ray passes through...

 and Wollaston

Wollaston prism

A Wollaston prism is an optical device, invented by William Hyde Wollaston, that manipulates polarized light. It separates randomly polarized or unpolarized light into two orthogonal linearly polarized outgoing beams....

prisms.

In the Sénarmont prism the s-polarized ray (i.e., the ray with polarization direction perpendicular to the plane in which all rays are contained, called the plane of incidence) passes through without being deflected, while the p-polarized ray (with polarization direction in the plane of incidence) is deflected (refracted) at the internal interface into a different direction. Both rays correspond to ordinary rays (o-rays) in the first component prism, since both polarization directions are perpendicular to the optical axis, which is the propagation direction. In the second component prism the s-polarized ray remains ordinary (o-ray, polarized perpendicular to the optical axis), while the p-polarized ray becomes extraordinary (e-ray), with a polarization component along the optical axis. As a consequence, the s-polarized ray is not deflected since the effective refractive index does not change across the interface. The p-polarized wave, on the other hand, is refracted because the effective refractive index changes upon changing from o-ray to e-ray.

The Sénarmont prism is similar in construction and action to the Rochon prism, as in both polarizers the ray that is not deflected is the o-ray after the internal interface, while the deflected ray is the e-ray. However, in the Rochon prism, it is the p-polarized ray that remains an o-ray on both sides of the interface, and is therefore not deflected, while the s-polarized ray changes from o-ray to e-ray and is therefore deflected.

External links

• http://www.olympusmicro.com/primer/java/prismsandbeamsplitters/polarizing/index.html Olympus Microscopy primer on polarising prisms, but note labelling error in the figure for the Sénarmont prism.