Some Demonstration Experiments in Optics Using a Gas Laser

Abstract

Some elementary experiments in geometrical and physical optics, usually limited to individual observations in the laboratory, can be adapted for presentation to larger groups as lecture or classroom demonstrations, by making use of the gas laser as light source. This paper describes several such experiments dealing with lens aberrations, interference and diffraction phenomena, and the Abbe theory of the microscope; together with some practical optical systems for performing them.