Optical Rotation

Optical Rotation

Optical rotation (optical activity) is the turning of the plane of linearly polarized light about the direction of motion as the light travels through certain materials. It occurs in solutions of chiral molecules such as sucrose (sugar), solids with rotated crystal planes such as quartz, and spin-polarized gases of atoms or molecules. It is used in the sugar industry to measure syrup concentration, in optics to manipulate polarization, in chemistry to characterize substances in solution, and in optical mineralogy to help identify certain minerals in thin sections. It is being developed as a method to measure blood sugar concentration in diabetic people.

Read more about Optical Rotation:  History, Theory, Areas of Use

Famous quotes containing the words optical and/or rotation:

    There is an optical illusion about every person we meet.
    Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

    The lazy manage to keep up with the earth’s rotation just as well as the industrious.
    Mason Cooley (b. 1927)