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363. The Principle of Reflection in Spectroscope

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2011

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Summary

The application of a reflector to pass light back through a prism, or prisms, is usually ascribed to Littrow. Thus Kayser writes (Handbuch der Spectroscopie, Bd. i. p. 513), “Der Erste, der Rückkehr der Strahlen zur Steigerung der Dispersion verwandte, war Littrow” (O. v. Littrow, Wien. Ber. XLVII. ii. pp. 26–32, 1863). But this was certainly not the first use of the method. I learned it myself from Maxwell (Phil. Trans. Vol. CL. p. 78, 1860), who says,” The principle of reflecting light, so as to pass twice through the same prism, was employed by me in an instrument for combining colours made in 1856, and a reflecting instrument for observing the spectrum has been constructed by M. Porro.”

I have not been able to find the reference to Porro; but it would seem that both Maxwell and Porro antedated Littrow. As to the advantages of the method there can be no doubt.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009
First published in: 1920

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