Dispersive prism

<p>In <a href="/facts/Optics/p0vq4S1T">optics</a>, a dispersive prism is an <a href="/facts/Prism_(optics)/eodBFF70">optical prism</a> that is used to <a href="/facts/Dispersion_(optics)/cUdHnYXz">disperse</a> <a href="/facts/Light/jeofpMn4">light</a>, that is, to separate light into its <a href="/facts/Continuous_spectrum/CYz0fv0d">spectral</a> components (the <a href="/facts/Color/XDvW7ESP">colors</a> of the <a href="/facts/Rainbow/rBvLyu3u">rainbow</a>). Different <a href="/facts/Wavelength/kcJU0ymz">wavelengths</a> (colors) of light will be deflected by the prism at different angles. This is a result of the prism material's <a href="/facts/Index_of_refraction/yjkzvgeE">index of refraction</a> varying with wavelength (dispersion). Generally, longer wavelengths (red) undergo a smaller deviation than shorter wavelengths (blue). The dispersion of white light into colors by a prism led <a href="/facts/Sir_Isaac_Newton/4L7gTncN">Sir Isaac Newton</a> to conclude that white light consisted of a mixture of different colors. 
</p><p><a href="/facts/Triangular_prism/Yjp4Kw9M">Triangular prisms</a> are the most common type of dispersive prism. Other types of dispersive prism exist that have more than two optical interfaces; some of them combine refraction with <a href="/facts/Total_internal_reflection/Tm0M62NQ">total internal reflection</a>.
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Dispersive prism open-in-new

Dispersive prism