Page:Collected Physical Papers.djvu/131



A circular piece of chilled glass when interposed between crossed Nicols produces a dark cross. A similar effect is produced by crystals like salicine where there is a radial disposition of the principal planes.

I have been able to detect a similar phenomenon in the field of electric radiation by the interposition of an artificial structure between the crossed polariser and analyser.

I have in a previous communication described the polarisation produced by the leaves of a book. For the following experiment, a long strip of paper was rolled into a disc. A roll of Morse's tape serves the purpose very well. The diameter of the disc is 14 cm. and its thickness 2 cm. It will be observed that here we have a single axis passing through the centre, and that all planes passing through the centre are principal planes.

The effect produced by the interposition of the structure may be studied by keeping the disc fixed and exploring the different parts of the field by means of the detector; or the detector may be kept fixed (opposite the analyser) and the disc may be moved about so that the different parts of the field may successively be brought to act on the detector. This latter plan was adopted as being simpler in practice.