1 May 1999

Optics Communications 163 Ž1999. 95–102

Full length article

Dispersion-equation coefficients for the refractive index and
birefringence of calcite and quartz crystals
)
Gorachand Ghosh
Femtosecond Technology Research Association, Electrotechnical Laboratory, 1-1-4, Umezono, Tsukuba 305-8568, Japan
Received 11 November 1998; received in revised form 8 February 1999; accepted 17 February 1999

Abstract

The refractive index, birefringence and their dispersions are analyzed accurately in a physically meaningful model of a
dispersion equation having only five coefficients for the calcite and quartz crystals. This dispersion equation is based on the
average electronic absorption gap in the UV region and the effective lattice resonance absorption gap in the IR region. The
five coefficients of the dispersion equation are different for each fundamental parameters. The dispersion equation for the
birefringence leads to represent a standardized equation describing the birefringence of all optical materials. q 1999 Elsevier
Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Refractive index; Birefringence; Dispersion equation; Optical constants; Absorption band gaps

1. Introduction indices, and henceforth, the values of birefringence for

The refractive index, the birefringence, Bf , i.e., the
difference of refractive indices between the extraordinary,
n e , and the ordinary, n o , polarizations in any uniaxial
crystal are the fundamental and intrinsic optical parameters
to characterize any optical devicersystem where these
crystals are used. Normally, the refractive indices are
measured at discrete wavelengths for the ordinary and
extraordinary polarizations and their differences are calcu-
lated as the birefringence. The accurate values of both the
refractive index of the optical material and the wavelength
of the light are important to describe these values in a
physically meaningful model. There are many dispersion
relations to describe the refractive index and its dispersion
for different crystals and other optical materials having
references cited in Refs. w1,2x since 1902. The refractive
)
Tel.: q81-298-54-3321; Fax: q81-298-54-5640; E-mail:
gora@etl.go.jp
calcite and quartz crystals were measured and are also
cited in the literature w1–5x. The ordinary and extraordinary
refractive indices are expressed by four oscillators Žnine
coefficients. and three oscillators Žseven coefficients. of
dispersion formulas, respectively, for calcite; and by five
oscillators Ž11 coefficients. for quartz crystals w2x without
representing the accurate experimental values.
I have analyzed the refractive indices of all optical
materials with sufficient accuracy in a physically meaning-
ful two-pole dispersion equation Žfive coefficients. w6x.
One pole is lying in the UVrVUV region and the other
pole is situated in the IR region. In Section 2, I have
analyzed the refractive index values of both the well-known
crystals, calcite and quartz, satisfactorily. Interestingly, a
unique and efficient polarization interference technique has
been developed by Fischer et al. w7x to measure directly the
birefringence of the high index nonlinear crystals with
sufficient accuracy Ž"0.00005 at room temperature.. So
far, there is no dispersion equation to represent directly the
birefringence of the uniaxial and anisotropic crystals. Re-
cently, I have formulated a physically meaningful disper-
sion equation w8x to express not only the values of bire-

0030-4018r99r$ - see front matter q 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 0 3 0 - 4 0 1 8 Ž 9 9 . 0 0 0 9 1 - 7
96 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102

fringence at room temperature, but also at other tempera-

tures with accuracies better than that at the experiment for
ZnGeP2 chalcopyrite crystal. In Section 3, I have applied
the same dispersion equation to represent the values of
birefringence of the calcite and quartz crystals nicely.

2. Evaluation of dispersion coefficients for refractive

index

The refractive index of any optical material is deter-
mined mainly by the two types of resonance absorption:
one is due to the electronic transitions of oscillators, i.e.,
the average resonance of electronic absorption in the UV
region and the other is due to the lattice vibrations of the
material in the IR region. The dispersion coefficients for
refractive indices are related as
Bo ,e l2 Do ,e l2
n2o ,e s A o ,e q q ,
l2 y Co ,e l2 y Fo ,e
where A o,e , Bo,e , Co,e , Do,e , Fo,e are the dispersion coeffi-
cients, Co,e and Fo,e represent the effective resonance
absorption wavelengths in the UV and IR region, respec-
tively, and l is the wavelength in mm. The value of F is
the input parameter and the initial values of A, B, C are
calculated from the band edge data of the crystals. The
choice of the value for F is not critical because the
materials stop transmission long before the onset of lattice
absorption frequency. By adding corrections and utilizing
an efficient convergence iterative process, a minimum
value of deviation between the experimental and computed
values of refractive indices is obtained for a particular set
of these five coefficients. As I have analyzed, the value of
refractive index w1x at 0.185 mm of the quartz crystal is not
accurate at the fourth decimal place for both the ordinary
Fig. 2. The experimental and computed values of refractive index
vs. wavelength for quartz crystal: points, experimental data; solid
curves, computed values.
and extraordinary polarizations. This inaccurate datum gave
the unwanted poor fitting for the whole set of refractive
index values. Similarly, the refractive index values at
Ž1. 0.198 and 0.200 mm are not accurate at the third decimal
places of the calcite crystal. Therefore, the dispersion
coefficients are evaluated from the measured values of
refractive indices of the calcite and quartz crystals without
considering the above-mentioned experimental data, satis-
factorily. The experimental points and the fitted curves for
refractive indices are shown in Figs. 1 and 2 for the calcite
and quartz crystals, respectively. The evaluated dispersion
coefficients are shown in Table 1 along with the root mean
square deviations. It is worthwhile to examine and com-
pare the present work to the existing dispersion relations
w2x. The comparison of the experimental and computed
values are shown in Tables 2–5 for the ordinary and
extraordinary rays in the calcite and quartz crystals, respec-
tively. The calculated values of refractive indices w2x are
not so accurate as can be seen in these tables for both
crystals. It is clearly shown that the present set of disper-
sion coefficients for refractive indices are the best one
having less dispersion coefficients. Therefore, the present
set of dispersion coefficients gives us the most accurate
estimated values of refractive index for any wavelength
lying within the normal transmission region of the crystals.
It is worthwhile to examine the characteristic behavior
of the effective electronic absorption band gap for the
refractive indices. The band gaps are calculated from the
dispersion coefficient C by the following equation

1.2398
E bg s . Ž2.
'C

The value of E bg is in electron volts and the constant

Fig. 1. The experimental and computed values of refractive index 1.2398 is a correlating factor for the energy in electron-
vs. wavelength for calcite crystal: points, experimental data; solid volts and the wavelength in microns. The estimated band
curves, computed values. gaps are shown in Table 1. These band gaps are compared
 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102 97

Table 1
Coefficients of the dispersion equation for the refractive index of calcite and quartz crystals at room temperature
Crystal Polarization Dispersion coefficients RMSD Ž10y5 . Absorption band gap ŽeV.
A B C Ž10y2 .
D F Estimated Experimentala
CaCO 3 o 1.73358749 0.96464345 1.94325203 1.82831454 120 30.0 8.9 –
e 1.35859695 0.82427830 1.06689543 0.14429128 120 37.8 12.0 –
SiO 2 o 1.28604141 1.07044083 1.00585997 1.10202242 100 3.44 12.4 12.5
e 1.28851804 1.09509924 1.02101864 1.15662475 100 3.71 12.3 12.5

Bo ,e l2 Do ,e l2
n2o ,e s A o ,e q 2
q .
l y Co ,e l2 y Fo ,e
a
Ref. w9x for SiO 2 Žaverage of two peaks at 11.5 and 13.5 eV..

Table 2
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of refractive index for the ordinary rays of calcite crystal
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.2040 1.88224 1.882184 0.000056 1.884897 y0.002657
0.2080 1.86733 1.866589 0.000741 1.868397 y0.001067
0.2110 1.85692 1.855997 0.000923 1.857550 y0.000630
0.2140 1.84558 1.846232 y0.000652 1.847669 y0.002089
0.2190 1.83075 1.831551 y0.000801 1.832931 y0.002181
0.2260 1.81309 1.813794 y0.000704 1.815199 y0.002109
0.2310 1.80233 1.802752 y0.000422 1.804197 y0.001867
0.2420 1.78211 1.782239 y0.000129 1.783761 y0.001651
0.2570 1.76038 1.760496 y0.000116 1.762065 y0.001685
0.2630 1.75343 1.753303 0.000127 1.754873 y0.001443
0.2670 1.74864 1.748894 y0.000254 1.750460 y0.001820
0.2740 1.74139 1.741830 y0.000440 1.743380 y0.001990
0.2910 1.72774 1.727493 0.000247 1.728974 y0.001234
0.3030 1.71959 1.719253 0.000337 1.720668 y0.001078
0.3120 1.71425 1.713869 0.000381 1.715229 y0.000979
0.3300 1.70515 1.704727 0.000423 1.705972 y0.000822
0.3400 1.70078 1.700410 0.000370 1.701590 y0.000810
0.3460 1.69833 1.698037 0.000293 1.699179 y0.000849
0.3610 1.69316 1.692717 0.000443 1.693764 y0.000604
0.3940 1.68374 1.683418 0.000322 1.684272 y0.000532
0.4100 1.68014 1.679808 0.000332 1.680578 y0.000438
0.4340 1.67552 1.675209 0.000311 1.675864 y0.000344
0.4410 1.67423 1.674022 0.000208 1.674645 y0.000415
0.5080 1.66527 1.665186 0.000084 1.665564 y0.000294
0.5330 1.66277 1.662745 0.000025 1.663052 y0.000282
0.5600 1.66046 1.660471 y0.000011 1.660711 y0.000251
0.5890 1.65835 1.658364 y0.000014 1.658543 y0.000193
0.6430 1.65504 1.655139 y0.000099 1.655229 y0.000189
0.6560 1.65437 1.654470 y0.000100 1.654542 y0.000172
0.6700 1.65367 1.653788 y0.000118 1.653842 y0.000172
0.7000 1.65207 1.652444 y0.000374 1.652465 y0.000395
0.7680 1.64974 1.649868 y0.000128 1.649834 y0.000094
0.7950 1.64886 1.648985 y0.000125 1.648935 y0.000075
0.8010 1.64869 1.648797 y0.000107 1.648745 y0.000055
0.8330 1.64772 1.647844 y0.000124 1.647778 y0.000058
0.8670 1.64676 1.646908 y0.000148 1.646831 y0.000071
0.9050 1.64578 1.645937 y0.000157 1.645852 y0.000072
0.9460 1.64480 1.644964 y0.000164 1.644874 y0.000074
98 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102

Table 2 Žcontinued.
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.9910 1.64380 1.643964 y0.000164 1.643873 y0.000073
1.0420 1.64276 1.642899 y0.000139 1.642812 y0.000052
1.0970 1.64167 1.641811 y0.000141 1.641732 y0.000062
1.1590 1.64051 1.640638 y0.000128 1.640572 y0.000062
1.2290 1.63926 1.639359 y0.000099 1.639311 y0.000051
1.2730 1.63849 1.638570 y0.000080 1.638535 y0.000045
1.3070 1.63789 1.637965 y0.000075 1.637940 y0.000050
1.3200 1.63767 1.637734 y0.000064 1.637714 y0.000044
1.3690 1.63681 1.636866 y0.000056 1.636862 y0.000052
1.3960 1.63637 1.636388 y0.000018 1.636392 y0.000022
1.4220 1.63590 1.635926 y0.000026 1.635939 y0.000039
1.4790 1.63490 1.634910 y0.000010 1.634940 y0.000040
1.4970 1.63457 1.634587 y0.000017 1.634623 y0.000053
1.5410 1.63381 1.633793 0.000017 1.633841 y0.000031
1.6090 1.63261 1.632548 0.000062 1.632614 y0.000004
1.6820 1.63127 1.631183 0.000087 1.631263 0.000007
1.7610 1.62974 1.629666 0.000074 1.629756 y0.000016
1.8490 1.62800 1.627922 0.000078 1.628012 y0.000012
1.9460 1.62602 1.625924 0.000096 1.626000 0.000020
2.0530 1.62372 1.623621 0.000099 1.623659 0.000061
2.1720 1.62099 1.620926 0.000064 1.620888 0.000102
RMSDs 0.0003 RMSDs 0.0009

Table 3
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of refractive index for the extraordinary rays of calcite crystal
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.2040 1.57081 1.570667 0.000143 1.571153 y0.000343
0.2080 1.56640 1.566086 0.000314 1.566326 0.000074
0.2110 1.56327 1.562883 0.000387 1.562984 0.000286
0.2140 1.55976 1.559863 y0.000103 1.559855 y0.000095
0.2190 1.55496 1.555197 y0.000237 1.555060 y0.000100
0.2260 1.54921 1.549340 y0.000130 1.549099 0.000111
0.2310 1.54541 1.545575 y0.000165 1.545298 0.000112
0.2420 1.53782 1.538317 y0.000497 1.538024 y0.000204
0.2570 1.53005 1.530226 y0.000176 1.529982 0.000068
0.2630 1.52736 1.527455 y0.000095 1.527240 0.000120
0.2670 1.52547 1.525733 y0.000263 1.525538 y0.000068
0.2740 1.52261 1.522933 y0.000323 1.522775 y0.000165
0.2910 1.51705 1.517101 y0.000051 1.517029 0.000021
0.3030 1.51365 1.513654 y0.000004 1.513638 0.000012
0.3120 1.51140 1.511364 0.000036 1.511386 0.000014
0.3300 1.50746 1.507405 0.000055 1.507492 y0.000032
0.3400 1.50562 1.505505 0.000115 1.505623 y0.000003
0.3460 1.50450 1.504452 0.000048 1.504587 y0.000087
0.3610 1.50224 1.502071 0.000169 1.502242 y0.000002
0.3940 1.49810 1.497838 0.000262 1.498069 0.000031
0.4100 1.49640 1.496173 0.000227 1.496425 y0.000025
0.4340 1.49430 1.494035 0.000265 1.494310 y0.000010
0.4410 1.49373 1.493481 0.000249 1.493762 y0.000032
0.5080 1.48956 1.489333 0.000227 1.489643 y0.000083
0.5330 1.48841 1.488186 0.000224 1.488499 y0.000089
 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102 99

Table 3 Žcontinued.
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.5600 1.48736 1.487121 0.000239 1.487433 y0.000073
0.5890 1.48640 1.486139 0.000261 1.486449 y0.000049
0.6430 1.48490 1.484658 0.000242 1.484955 y0.000055
0.6560 1.48459 1.484355 0.000235 1.484648 y0.000058
0.6700 1.48426 1.484049 0.000211 1.484336 y0.000076
0.7000 1.48353 1.483452 0.000078 1.483728 y0.000198
0.7680 1.48259 1.482345 0.000245 1.482589 0.000001
0.7950 1.48216 1.481980 0.000180 1.482209 y0.000049
0.8010 1.48216 1.481904 0.000256 1.482129 0.000031
0.8330 1.48176 1.481522 0.000238 1.481729 0.000031
0.8670 1.48137 1.481159 0.000211 1.481345 0.000025
0.9050 1.48098 1.480798 0.000182 1.480958 0.000022
0.9460 1.48060 1.480451 0.000149 1.480582 0.000018
0.9910 1.48022 1.480114 0.000106 1.480211 0.000009
1.0420 1.47985 1.479776 0.000074 1.479832 0.000018
1.0970 1.47948 1.479455 0.000025 1.479463 0.000017
1.1590 1.47910 1.479135 y0.000035 1.479087 0.000013
1.2290 1.47870 1.478817 y0.000117 1.478700 0.000000
1.3070 1.47831 1.478503 y0.000193 1.478305 0.000005
1.3960 1.47789 1.478185 y0.000295 1.477887 0.000003
1.4970 1.47744 1.477861 y0.000421 1.477441 y0.000001
1.6150 1.47695 1.477516 y0.000566 1.476942 0.000008
1.7490 1.47638 1.477155 y0.000775 1.476389 y0.000009
1.9090 1.47573 1.476745 y0.001015 1.475729 0.000001
2.1000 1.47492 1.476269 y0.001349 1.474921 y0.000001
3.3240 1.47392 1.472766 0.001154 1.468373 0.005547
RMSDs 0.0004 RMSDs 0.0008

Table 4
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of refractive index for the ordinary rays of quartz crystal
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.1980 1.65087 1.650902 y0.000032 1.652553 y0.001683
0.2310 1.61395 1.613860 0.000090 1.614267 y0.000317
0.3400 1.56747 1.567554 y0.000084 1.567528 y0.000058
0.3940 1.55846 1.558504 y0.000044 1.558488 y0.000028
0.4340 1.55396 1.553960 0.000000 1.553956 0.000004
0.5080 1.54822 1.548240 y0.000020 1.548257 y0.000037
0.5893 1.54424 1.544206 0.000034 1.544238 0.000002
0.7680 1.53903 1.538998 0.000032 1.539048 y0.000018
0.8325 1.53773 1.537711 0.000019 1.537763 y0.000033
0.9914 1.53514 1.535126 0.000014 1.535179 y0.000039
1.1592 1.53283 1.532823 0.000007 1.532872 y0.000042
1.3070 1.53090 1.530905 y0.000005 1.530949 y0.000049
1.3958 1.52977 1.529752 0.000018 1.529792 y0.000022
1.4792 1.52865 1.528651 y0.000001 1.528687 y0.000037
1.5414 1.52781 1.527813 y0.000003 1.527846 y0.000036
1.6815 1.52583 1.525857 y0.000027 1.525883 y0.000053
1.7614 1.52468 1.524690 y0.000010 1.524712 y0.000032
1.9457 1.52184 1.521832 0.000008 1.521845 y0.000005
2.0531 1.52005 1.520048 0.000002 1.520056 y0.000006
RMSDs 0.0003 RMSDs 0.0004
100 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102

Table 5
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of refractive index for the extraordinary rays of quartz crystal
Wavelength Žmm. Refractive index Difference R.I. Žcalculated. w2x Difference
Experimental w1x This work
0.1980 1.66394 1.663972 y0.000032 1.665774 y0.001834
0.2310 1.62555 1.625459 0.000091 1.625948 y0.000398
0.3400 1.57737 1.577457 y0.000087 1.577594 y0.000224
0.3940 1.56805 1.568093 y0.000043 1.568306 y0.000256
0.4340 1.56339 1.563393 y0.000003 1.563673 y0.000283
0.5080 1.55746 1.557478 y0.000018 1.557888 y0.000428
0.7680 1.54794 1.547917 0.000023 1.548871 y0.000931
0.8325 1.54661 1.546583 0.000027 1.547698 y0.001088
0.9914 1.54392 1.543901 0.000019 1.545459 y0.001539
1.1592 1.54152 1.541508 0.000012 1.543614 y0.002094
1.3070 1.53951 1.539513 y0.000003 1.542172 y0.002662
1.3958 1.53832 1.538312 0.000008 1.541337 y0.003017
1.4792 1.53716 1.537166 y0.000006 1.540556 y0.003396
1.5414 1.53630 1.536292 0.000008 1.539970 y0.003670
1.6815 1.53422 1.534253 y0.000033 1.538623 y0.004403
1.7614 1.53301 1.533036 y0.000026 1.537831 y0.004821
1.9457 1.53004 1.530055 y0.000015 1.535911 y0.005871
2.0531 1.52823 1.528194 0.000036 1.534722 y0.006492
RMSDs 0.00004 RMSDs 0.003

with the available experimental values of the quartz crys-
tal, satisfactorily.
3. Evaluation of dispersion coefficients for bire-
fringence
The birefringence, Bf , i.e., the refractive index differ-
ence between the extraordinary, n e , and the ordinary, n o ,
polarizations in any uniaxial crystal is also a fundamental
parameter. Normally, these values are calculated from the
measured values of refractive indices of the ordinary and
extraordinary polarizations of light transmitting through
the crystals. Recently, a unique and efficient polarization
interference technique has been developed by Fischer et al.
w7x to measure directly the birefringence of the high index
nonlinear crystals with sufficient accuracy Ž"0.00005 at
room temperature.. This method can be used to measure
directly the birefringence of these well-known crystals
with an estimated accuracy of "0.00001. So far, there is
no dispersion equation to represent the birefringence of the
uniaxial and anisotropic crystals. However, I have formu-
lated a physically meaningful dispersion equation w8x to
represent the birefringence of the uniaxial crystals. Re-
cently, I have also analyzed the refractive indices of all
uniaxial crystals w6x in a standardized dispersion equation.
Here the value of lattice resonance energy gap is the same
for both the ordinary and extraordinary polarizations. Also,
the average electronic absorption band gaps are nearly
equal for both the ordinary and extraordinary rays. There-

Table 6
Coefficients of the dispersion equation for the birefringence of calcite and quartz crystals at room temperature
Crystals Dispersion coefficients Accuracy Ž10y3 . Absorption
3. 3. 2. 3.
H Ž=10 I Ž=10 G Ž=10 J Ž=10 L AVD RMSD band gap ŽeV.
Calcite y29.435688 y134.804456 2.17641576 y294.96110 80 0.113 0.174 8.41
Quartz 0.78890253 8.04095323 1.37254429 10.1933186 64 0.010 0.014 10.58

I l2 J l2
Bf s H q 2
q .
2
l yG l yL
AVD: average deviation.
RMSD: root mean squares deviation.
 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102 101

The evaluated dispersion coefficients are shown in Table 6

for the birefringence of calcite and quartz uniaxial crystals.
The fitting accuracies are also mentioned in this table. The
experimental points, as open circles for the quartz crystal

Table 7
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of bire-
fringence for calcite crystal
Wavelength y Bf Ž=10 3 . Difference
Žmm. Experimental Calculated
w1x Žthis work.
0.204 311.61 311.877 y0.267
0.208 300.93 300.542 0.388
Fig. 3. The experimental and computed values of birefringence vs. 0.211 293.65 293.000 0.650
wavelength for calcite and quartz uniaxial crystals at room tem- 0.214 285.82 286.155 y0.335
perature: points, experimental data; solid curves, computed values. 0.219 275.79 276.058 y0.268
0.226 263.88 264.145 y0.265
0.231 256.92 256.898 0.022
fore, the birefringence, Bf , is expressed by the following 0.242 243.29 243.750 y0.460
0.257 230.33 230.247 0.083
dispersion relation w8x
0.263 226.07 225.875 0.195
I l2 J l2 0.267 223.17 223.218 y0.048
Bf s H q q , Ž3. 0.274 218.78 218.996 y0.216
l2 y G l2 y L 0.291 210.69 210.559 0.131
where G, H, I, J and L are the dispersion coefficients for 0.303 205.94 205.787 0.153
birefringence of the optical materials and l is the wave- 0.312 202.85 202.699 0.151
length in microns. The coefficient H is the net effective 0.330 197.69 197.509 0.181
contribution from the higher energy gaps at the short- 0.340 195.16 195.080 0.080
wavelength region. Its value may be positive or negative. 0.346 193.83 193.751 0.079
0.361 190.92 190.785 0.135
The coefficients I and J are the net effective difference of
0.394 185.64 185.648 y0.008
oscillator strengths for the extraordinary and ordinary po- 0.410 183.74 183.668 0.072
larizations. These values may be positive or negative. The 0.434 181.22 181.155 0.065
coefficient G is the effective energy gap at the short-wave- 0.441 180.50 180.508 y0.008
length region to account for the birefringence and its value 0.508 175.71 175.702 0.008
is always positive. The coefficient L is the net effective 0.533 174.36 174.373 y0.013
resonance absorption in the long-wavelength region. Its 0.560 173.10 173.133 y0.033
value is always positive. Therefore, the dispersion Eq. Ž3. 0.589 171.95 171.979 y0.029
can be used to satisfactorily analyze the measured values 0.643 170.14 170.198 y0.058
of birefringence for uniaxial and biaxial crystals. 0.656 169.78 169.826 y0.046
0.670 169.41 169.444 y0.034
The normal approach for calculating the dispersion
0.706 168.54 168.546 y0.006
coefficients is to first find the initial values of the parame- 0.768 167.15 167.214 y0.064
ters and then to add corrections by an iterative process so 0.795 166.70 166.699 0.001
as to minimize the deviation between the measured and the 0.801 166.53 166.589 y0.059
computed values. I am able to evaluate the coefficients by 0.833 165.96 166.025 y0.064
fitting the measured data of birefringence for calcite w1x 0.867 165.39 165.462 y0.072
and quartz crystals w3–5x, satisfactorily by a suitable soft- 0.905 164.80 164.869 y0.069
ware that I have developed for evaluating the dispersion 0.946 164.20 164.263 y0.063
coefficients for refractive indices as mentioned in Section 0.991 163.58 163.629 y0.049
2. The choice of the value for L is not critical since the 1.042 162.91 162.939 y0.029
1.097 162.19 162.218 y0.028
materials stop transmitting long before the onset of lattice
1.159 161.41 161.423 y0.013
absorption frequency. The value of L is not the same as 1.229 160.56 160.535 0.025
the value of F. Its value is lower than that of F, since 1.307 159.58 159.544 0.036
there is a denominating factor of average Ž n o q n e . in the 1.396 158.48 158.398 0.082
dispersion relation of birefringence. It is the net effective 1.497 157.13 157.061 0.069
resonance energy gap in the IR region for birefringence.
102 G. Ghoshr Optics Communications 163 (1999) 95–102

Table 8 birefringence. The band gaps are calculated from the dis-
Comparison of the experimental and computed values of bire- persion coefficient G by the following equation
fringence for quartz crystal
1.2398
Bf Ž=10 3 . E bg s
Wavelength
Žmm.
Difference
'G . Ž4.
Experimental Calculated
w3–5x Žthis work. The estimated band gaps are also shown in Table 6. This
0.18550 14.17 14.160 0.010 band gap is 0.3 eV higher than the isentropic band gap of
0.19900 13.07 13.089 y0.019 10.3 eV w6x for quartz crystal. The value of band gap for
0.22650 11.77 11.759 0.011 the birefringence is lower than that of the refractive index.
0.25730 10.91 10.922 y0.012
0.27490 10.60 10.602 y0.002
0.36110 9.77 9.755 0.015 4. Conclusions
0.40460 9.56 9.540 0.020
0.43410 9.43 9.431 y0.001 I have evaluated the coefficients of a physically mean-
0.48000 9.29 9.302 y0.012 ingful dispersion equation to characterize the fundamental
0.54610 9.17 9.170 0.000 parameter of refractive index and birefringence of the
0.58930 9.11 9.105 0.005 calcite and quartz uniaxial crystals, satisfactorily. The
0.65630 9.02 9.025 y0.005 evaluated average electronic absorption band gaps are in
0.67080 9.01 9.011 y0.001 good agreement with the experimental values. This disper-
0.76820 8.94 8.926 0.014 sion equation for birefringence will lead to have a stan-
0.79480 8.91 8.907 0.003
dardized equation for representing the birefringence of all
0.84460 8.88 8.873 0.007
1.01406 8.77 8.772 y0.002
other uniaxial crystals in future.
1.15920 8.69 8.694 y0.004
1.30700 8.61 8.615 y0.005
1.39580 8.55 8.567 y0.017
Acknowledgements
1.47920 8.51 8.520 y0.010
The author is grateful to Hiroyoshi Yajima and Fujio
1.54140 8.49 8.484 0.006
1.68150 8.39 8.398 y0.008
Saito for continuous encouragement. This work is per-
1.76140 8.33 8.346 y0.016 formed under the management of a technological research
1.94570 8.20 8.218 y0.018 association, the Femtosecond Technology Research Asso-
2.05310 8.18 8.137 0.043 ciation ŽFESTA., supported by New Energy and Industrial
Technology Development Organization ŽNEDO..

and rhombus for calcite and the calculated solid curves, are
shown in Fig. 3. It is to be noted that the measured values
of birefringence are from different sources and for differ-
ent wavelength regions for the calcite crystal. The experi-
mental accuracy and the ambient temperature are different
for different sources. The agreement between the observed
and calculated values are within one or seven parts in the
fourth decimal place for calcite and one or four parts in the
fifth decimal place for quartz crystal. The experimental
and the computed values of birefringence are shown in
Tables 7 and 8 for the calcite and quartz crystals, respec-
tively, to show the effectiveness of this model. The present
fitting accuracy is sufficient to explain these well-known
historical data in this sound and physically meaningful
model. Henceforth, the dispersion coefficients as cited in
Table 6 are useful to estimate the birefringence for any
wavelength lying within the normal transmission region of
these crystals.
It is worthwhile to examine the characteristic behavior
of the effective electronic absorption band gap for the
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