The Sagnac effect: interference in a rotating frame of reference.
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- Schwartz, Eyal, ; Meitav, Nizan,
- Source
- Physics Education; Mar2013, Vol. 48 Issue 2, p203-206, 4p
- Subject
- Measuring instruments
Sagnac effect
Nonlinear optics
Light
Electromagnetic waves
Interferometers
- Language
- ISSN
- 00319120
The phenomenon of interference has great importance in understanding the wave properties of light. Here, we demonstrate the effect of a moving reference frame on an interference pattern by building a simple Sagnac interferometer, without the burden of using optical fibres. A generalized theoretical derivation for an arbitrarily shaped interferometer is given, and the Sagnac effect is demonstrated in a simple laboratory setup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]