PMID: 11607642Mar 19, 1996Paper

Colored diffraction catastrophes

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
M V Berry, S Klein

Abstract

On fine scales, caustics produced with white light show vividly colored diffraction fringes. For caustics described by the elementary catastrophes of singularity theory, the colors are characteristic of the type of singularity. We study the diffraction colors of the fold and cusp catastrophes. The colors can be simulated computationally as the superposition of monochromatic patterns for different wavelengths. Far from the caustic, where the luminosity contrast is negligible, the fringe colors persist; an asymptotic theory explains why. Experiments with caustics produced by refraction through irregular bathroom-window glass show good agreement with theory. Colored fringes near the cusp reveal fine lines that are not present in any of the monochromatic components; these lines are explained in terms of partial decoherence between rays with widely differing path differences.

References

Jun 1, 1974·Journal of the Optical Society of America·R L HilzC R Cavonius
Feb 1, 1970·Journal of the Optical Society of America·R Hilz, C R Cavonius

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Citations

Feb 16, 2013·Journal of Synchrotron Radiation·V G KohnI A Vartanyants
Aug 3, 2002·Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, Image Science, and Vision·Greg GburEmil Wolf
May 15, 2002·Physical Review Letters·G Popescu, A Dogariu
Sep 28, 2004·Physical Review Letters·Grover A Swartzlander, Joanna Schmit
Jun 14, 2003·Philosophical Transactions. Series A, Mathematical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences·M V Berry
Oct 15, 2008·Physical Review Letters·Jean-Paul Blaizot, Maciej A Nowak
Mar 1, 2019·Scientific Reports·Mohamed HatifiMarc Brachet
Nov 11, 2005·Optics Letters·Grover A Swartzlander
Aug 19, 2008·Optics Letters·Mohammad Amiri, Mohammad Taghi Tavassoly
Jun 14, 2006·Optics Letters·Grover A Swartzlander
May 2, 2020·Optics Letters·M A van GoghL Kuipers
Jan 22, 2002·Physical Review Letters·G GburE Wolf

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