THE REFRACTIVE INDICES OF WHOLE CELLS

Abstract

Refractive indices of intact sporangiophores of Phycomyces were computed from measurements of focal length and radius of curvature of the cells. For the six cells studied, effective values of n were obtained ranging from 1.35 to 1.40. The average effective n was 1.38. Senn's determination of refractive indices of other plants cells gave much higher values: n = 1.37 to 1.52. The precision of the method and possible sources of this discrepancy are discussed.