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glossary
- Interference: superposition of light waves whose resulting intensity depends on the phase shifts between them
- Wavelength ( of a light wave ): distance between two consecutive identical states of the electric ( or magnetic ) field
- Refraction index: for a transparent medium, ratio between the light speed in the air and the light speed in the medium ; for a reflective surface in the air or vacuum, the refraction index is « - 1 »
- Fabry Perot interferometer: multi-wave interferometer made of a parallel plate which surfaces have a non null reflectivity
- Interference fringe: bright or dark band caused by light waves interference - bright and dark fringe occur for waves respectively in phase and out of phase with one another
- Effective focal length: algebraic distance from the primary/secondary principal plane of an optical system to its front/back focal plane
- Back focal plane: plane conjugate by an optical system of an object plane perpendicular to the optical axis and located at infinity
- Order ( interference ): number of wavelengths corresponding to the difference between the optical paths traveled by two interfering light rays