Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!nrl-cmf!ames!sgi!mitch@bombadl.SGI.COM
From: mitch@bombadl.SGI.COM (Thomas P. Mitchell)
Newsgroups: comp.graphics
Subject: Re: Ray tracing refraction
Summary: index of refraction is a function of wavelength
Message-ID: <25763@sgi.SGI.COM>
Date: 29 Jan 89 23:48:00 GMT
References: <65@sdcc10.ucsd.EDU>, <0XryqWy00Uo1875Ud-@andrew.cmu.edu>
Sender: daemon@sgi.SGI.COM
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Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc., Mountain View, CA
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In article <0XryqWy00Uo1875Ud-@andrew.cmu.edu>, po0o+@andrew.cmu.edu (Paul Andrew Olbrich) writes:
> Hi-ho,
> 
> I'm trying to add refraction to a ray tracing program I'm writing in C.  Could


Pauls note prompted me to ask others  who have worked with ray tracing
programs the following:

How do people (or do they) manage refraction when the index of
refraction is a function of the wave length of light and in a crystal
the direction of light with respect to the orientation of the crystal
itself.

The reason that this would be valuable is that to ignore it
life would be without rainbows and the fire of diamonds.

PS:

I can live with out Polaroid glasses today so I will not touch
on pleocroism (which I may no longer be able to spell).


--
Thomas P. Mitchell  (mitch@sgi.com)