Optical constants
Refractive index of 5CB (4-pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl)
Wu et al. 1993: n(o) 0.4–0.8 µm; 29.9 °C
- Data
- formula 6
- Range
- 0.4–0.8 µm
- Temperature
- 303.05 K
- Optical axis
- o
- Licence
- CC0-1.0
Uniaxial crystal, axes: oe
Plot
Click the plot to set the calculator wavelength.
At one wavelength
- Refractive index n
- 1.53526
- Extinction coefficient k
- 0
- Permittivity ε1
- 2.35701
- Permittivity ε2
- 0
- Absorption coefficient α
- 0 cm⁻¹
- Penetration depth δ = λ/(2πk)
- — nm
- Abbe number Vd
- 29.471
- Chromatic dispersion dn/dλ
- -0.0873069 µm⁻¹
- Group index ng
- 1.58656
- Group velocity dispersion
- 211.005 fs²/mm
- Dispersion parameter D
- -1151.15 ps/(nm·km)
- Photon energy
- 2.11001 eV
ε = (n + ik)², α = 4πk/λ, ng = n − λ dn/dλ, GVD = λ³/(2πc²) d²n/dλ², D = −(λ/c) d²n/dλ². Group-velocity dispersion is given for formula data only.
Use it in Lightsmith
Load this data in Python, simulate in one more line
pip install lightsmith
import lightsmith as ls
# 5CB (4-pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl): Wu et al. 1993: n(o) 0.4–0.8 µm; 29.9 °C
mat = ls.fetch_refractiveindex("other", "5CB", "Wu-29.9C-o", ref="c5c2f188e848453def5970e347399d653df2ffc2")
print(mat.range_nm) # (400, 800) nm
eps = mat.eps([633]) # complex permittivity
Downloads the original record once (pinned to the imported snapshot) and caches it.
import json, urllib.request
import lightsmith as ls
url = "https://materials.lightsmith.dev/v1/datasets/ds_44b13f8be09c/lightsmith"
mat = ls.Tabulated.model_validate(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(url)))
print(mat.source) # citation and provenance travel with the data
Any dataset here, as the library's Tabulated material (5cb/wu-1993-29-9c-o).
# ... load mat as above, then:
sim = ls.Simulation(
particles=[ls.Particle(shape=ls.Sphere(radius_nm=50), material=mat)],
medium_index=1.0,
wavelengths=ls.WavelengthRange(start_nm=400, stop_nm=800, num=81),
)
res = ls.solve(sim) # exact Mie for a sphere
print(res.q_ext) # extinction efficiency at each wavelength
Same spec runs with DDA, FDTD, BEM or T-matrix: ls.compare(sim, ["mie", "dda"]).
Lightsmith is open source (MIT): Mie, T-matrix, BEM, DDA, FDTD, RCWA, TMM, mode solvers and inverse design behind one spec, on CPU or GPU. GitHub.
Dispersion formula
Gases (formula 6), λ in µmValid from 0.4 to 0.8 µm.
Coefficients as stored
| Ci | Value |
|---|---|
| C1 | 0.4138 |
| C2 | 1.3842 |
| C3 | 22.6757 |
| C4 | 0.4982 |
| C5 | 12.5748 |
Comments and conditions
Conditions
- temperature
- 303.05 K
- direction
- o
References
- doi:10.1117/12.143988 Refractive index dispersions of liquid crystals, Optical Engineering (1993)
Cite
Shin-Tson Wu, ChiungSheng Wu, Marc Warenghem and M. Ismaili. Refractive index dispersions of liquid crystals. Optical Engineering, 32, 1775-1780 (1993), doi:10.1117/12.143988; Data from the refractiveindex.info database (M. N. Polyanskiy, Sci. Data 11, 94 (2024), doi:10.1038/s41597-023-02898-2)
Data
Computed on 400 wavelengths, the same grid as the API and the library| λ (µm) | n |
|---|---|
| 0.4 | 1.57684 |
| 0.400695 | 1.57646 |
| 0.401392 | 1.576083 |
| 0.40209 | 1.57571 |
| 0.402789 | 1.57534 |
| 0.40349 | 1.574973 |
| 0.404191 | 1.57461 |
| 0.404894 | 1.574249 |
| 0.405598 | 1.573892 |
| 0.406303 | 1.573538 |
| 0.40701 | 1.573188 |
| 0.407717 | 1.57284 |
| 0.408426 | 1.572495 |
| 0.409136 | 1.572153 |
| 0.409848 | 1.571814 |
| 0.41056 | 1.571478 |
| 0.411274 | 1.571145 |
| 0.411989 | 1.570815 |
| 0.412706 | 1.570487 |
| 0.413423 | 1.570163 |
| 0.414142 | 1.569841 |
| 0.414862 | 1.569521 |
| 0.415583 | 1.569205 |
| 0.416306 | 1.568891 |
| 0.41703 | 1.568579 |
| 0.417755 | 1.56827 |
| 0.418481 | 1.567964 |
| 0.419209 | 1.56766 |
| 0.419938 | 1.567358 |
| 0.420668 | 1.567059 |
| 0.421399 | 1.566763 |
| 0.422132 | 1.566468 |
| 0.422866 | 1.566177 |
| 0.423601 | 1.565887 |
| 0.424338 | 1.5656 |
| 0.425076 | 1.565315 |
| 0.425815 | 1.565032 |
| 0.426555 | 1.564752 |
| 0.427297 | 1.564473 |
| 0.42804 | 1.564197 |
| 0.428784 | 1.563923 |
| 0.429529 | 1.563651 |
| 0.430276 | 1.563381 |
| 0.431024 | 1.563114 |
| 0.431774 | 1.562848 |
| 0.432525 | 1.562584 |
| 0.433277 | 1.562323 |
| 0.43403 | 1.562063 |
| 0.434785 | 1.561805 |
| 0.435541 | 1.56155 |
| 0.436298 | 1.561296 |
| 0.437056 | 1.561044 |
| 0.437816 | 1.560794 |
| 0.438578 | 1.560546 |
| 0.43934 | 1.560299 |
| 0.440104 | 1.560055 |
| 0.440869 | 1.559812 |
| 0.441636 | 1.559571 |
| 0.442404 | 1.559332 |
| 0.443173 | 1.559095 |
| 0.443943 | 1.558859 |
| 0.444715 | 1.558625 |
| 0.445489 | 1.558392 |
| 0.446263 | 1.558162 |
| 0.447039 | 1.557933 |
| 0.447816 | 1.557705 |
| 0.448595 | 1.55748 |
| 0.449375 | 1.557256 |
| 0.450156 | 1.557033 |
| 0.450939 | 1.556812 |
| 0.451723 | 1.556593 |
| 0.452508 | 1.556375 |
| 0.453295 | 1.556158 |
| 0.454083 | 1.555944 |
| 0.454873 | 1.55573 |
| 0.455664 | 1.555518 |
| 0.456456 | 1.555308 |
| 0.45725 | 1.555099 |
| 0.458045 | 1.554892 |
| 0.458841 | 1.554686 |
| 0.459639 | 1.554481 |
| 0.460438 | 1.554278 |
| 0.461239 | 1.554076 |
| 0.462041 | 1.553875 |
| 0.462844 | 1.553676 |
| 0.463649 | 1.553478 |
| 0.464455 | 1.553282 |
| 0.465263 | 1.553087 |
| 0.466072 | 1.552893 |
| 0.466882 | 1.5527 |
| 0.467694 | 1.552509 |
| 0.468507 | 1.552319 |
| 0.469321 | 1.55213 |
| 0.470137 | 1.551943 |
| 0.470955 | 1.551757 |
| 0.471774 | 1.551571 |
| 0.472594 | 1.551388 |
| 0.473416 | 1.551205 |
| 0.474239 | 1.551024 |
| 0.475063 | 1.550843 |
| 0.475889 | 1.550664 |
| 0.476717 | 1.550486 |
| 0.477546 | 1.55031 |
| 0.478376 | 1.550134 |
| 0.479208 | 1.549959 |
| 0.480041 | 1.549786 |
| 0.480876 | 1.549614 |
| 0.481712 | 1.549443 |
| 0.482549 | 1.549273 |
| 0.483388 | 1.549104 |
| 0.484229 | 1.548936 |
| 0.485071 | 1.548769 |
| 0.485914 | 1.548603 |
| 0.486759 | 1.548438 |
| 0.487605 | 1.548274 |
| 0.488453 | 1.548112 |
| 0.489303 | 1.54795 |
| 0.490153 | 1.547789 |
| 0.491006 | 1.547629 |
| 0.491859 | 1.547471 |
| 0.492714 | 1.547313 |
| 0.493571 | 1.547156 |
| 0.494429 | 1.547 |
| 0.495289 | 1.546846 |
| 0.49615 | 1.546692 |
| 0.497013 | 1.546539 |
| 0.497877 | 1.546387 |
| 0.498743 | 1.546236 |
| 0.49961 | 1.546085 |
| 0.500479 | 1.545936 |
| 0.501349 | 1.545788 |
| 0.50222 | 1.54564 |
| 0.503094 | 1.545494 |
| 0.503968 | 1.545348 |
| 0.504845 | 1.545203 |
| 0.505722 | 1.545059 |
| 0.506602 | 1.544916 |
| 0.507483 | 1.544774 |
| 0.508365 | 1.544632 |
| 0.509249 | 1.544492 |
| 0.510134 | 1.544352 |
| 0.511021 | 1.544213 |
| 0.51191 | 1.544075 |
| 0.5128 | 1.543938 |
| 0.513692 | 1.543801 |
| 0.514585 | 1.543665 |
| 0.515479 | 1.543531 |
| 0.516376 | 1.543396 |
| 0.517274 | 1.543263 |
| 0.518173 | 1.543131 |
| 0.519074 | 1.542999 |
| 0.519976 | 1.542868 |
| 0.52088 | 1.542737 |
| 0.521786 | 1.542608 |
| 0.522693 | 1.542479 |
| 0.523602 | 1.542351 |
| 0.524513 | 1.542224 |
| 0.525425 | 1.542097 |
| 0.526338 | 1.541971 |
| 0.527253 | 1.541846 |
| 0.52817 | 1.541722 |
| 0.529088 | 1.541598 |
| 0.530008 | 1.541475 |
| 0.53093 | 1.541353 |
| 0.531853 | 1.541231 |
| 0.532778 | 1.54111 |
| 0.533704 | 1.54099 |
| 0.534632 | 1.54087 |
| 0.535562 | 1.540751 |
| 0.536493 | 1.540633 |
| 0.537426 | 1.540516 |
| 0.53836 | 1.540399 |
| 0.539296 | 1.540282 |
| 0.540234 | 1.540167 |
| 0.541173 | 1.540052 |
| 0.542114 | 1.539937 |
| 0.543057 | 1.539823 |
| 0.544001 | 1.53971 |
| 0.544947 | 1.539598 |
| 0.545894 | 1.539486 |
| 0.546843 | 1.539375 |
| 0.547794 | 1.539264 |
| 0.548747 | 1.539154 |
| 0.549701 | 1.539044 |
| 0.550657 | 1.538936 |
| 0.551614 | 1.538827 |
| 0.552573 | 1.53872 |
| 0.553534 | 1.538613 |
| 0.554496 | 1.538506 |
| 0.55546 | 1.5384 |
| 0.556426 | 1.538295 |
| 0.557394 | 1.53819 |
| 0.558363 | 1.538086 |
| 0.559334 | 1.537982 |
| 0.560306 | 1.537879 |
| 0.56128 | 1.537776 |
| 0.562256 | 1.537674 |
| 0.563234 | 1.537573 |
| 0.564213 | 1.537472 |
| 0.565194 | 1.537371 |
| 0.566177 | 1.537271 |
| 0.567161 | 1.537172 |
| 0.568148 | 1.537073 |
| 0.569135 | 1.536975 |
| 0.570125 | 1.536877 |
| 0.571116 | 1.53678 |
| 0.572109 | 1.536683 |
| 0.573104 | 1.536587 |
| 0.5741 | 1.536491 |
| 0.575099 | 1.536396 |
| 0.576099 | 1.536301 |
| 0.5771 | 1.536207 |
| 0.578104 | 1.536113 |
| 0.579109 | 1.536019 |
| 0.580116 | 1.535927 |
| 0.581124 | 1.535834 |
| 0.582135 | 1.535742 |
| 0.583147 | 1.535651 |
| 0.584161 | 1.53556 |
| 0.585177 | 1.53547 |
| 0.586194 | 1.53538 |
| 0.587213 | 1.53529 |
| 0.588234 | 1.535201 |
| 0.589257 | 1.535113 |
| 0.590282 | 1.535024 |
| 0.591308 | 1.534937 |
| 0.592336 | 1.534849 |
| 0.593366 | 1.534763 |
| 0.594398 | 1.534676 |
| 0.595431 | 1.53459 |
| 0.596466 | 1.534505 |
| 0.597504 | 1.53442 |
| 0.598542 | 1.534335 |
| 0.599583 | 1.534251 |
| 0.600626 | 1.534167 |
| 0.60167 | 1.534084 |
| 0.602716 | 1.534001 |
| 0.603764 | 1.533918 |
| 0.604814 | 1.533836 |
| 0.605865 | 1.533754 |
| 0.606919 | 1.533673 |
| 0.607974 | 1.533592 |
| 0.609031 | 1.533512 |
| 0.61009 | 1.533431 |
| 0.611151 | 1.533352 |
| 0.612214 | 1.533272 |
| 0.613278 | 1.533194 |
| 0.614344 | 1.533115 |
| 0.615413 | 1.533037 |
| 0.616483 | 1.532959 |
| 0.617554 | 1.532882 |
| 0.618628 | 1.532805 |
| 0.619704 | 1.532728 |
| 0.620781 | 1.532652 |
| 0.621861 | 1.532576 |
| 0.622942 | 1.532501 |
| 0.624025 | 1.532425 |
| 0.62511 | 1.532351 |
| 0.626197 | 1.532276 |
| 0.627286 | 1.532202 |
| 0.628376 | 1.532129 |
| 0.629469 | 1.532055 |
| 0.630563 | 1.531982 |
| 0.63166 | 1.53191 |
| 0.632758 | 1.531838 |
| 0.633858 | 1.531766 |
| 0.63496 | 1.531694 |
| 0.636064 | 1.531623 |
| 0.63717 | 1.531552 |
| 0.638278 | 1.531481 |
| 0.639388 | 1.531411 |
| 0.6405 | 1.531341 |
| 0.641613 | 1.531272 |
| 0.642729 | 1.531203 |
| 0.643847 | 1.531134 |
| 0.644966 | 1.531065 |
| 0.646087 | 1.530997 |
| 0.647211 | 1.530929 |
| 0.648336 | 1.530862 |
| 0.649463 | 1.530795 |
| 0.650593 | 1.530728 |
| 0.651724 | 1.530661 |
| 0.652857 | 1.530595 |
| 0.653992 | 1.530529 |
| 0.655129 | 1.530463 |
| 0.656268 | 1.530398 |
| 0.657409 | 1.530333 |
| 0.658552 | 1.530268 |
| 0.659697 | 1.530204 |
| 0.660844 | 1.53014 |
| 0.661993 | 1.530076 |
| 0.663145 | 1.530012 |
| 0.664298 | 1.529949 |
| 0.665453 | 1.529886 |
| 0.66661 | 1.529823 |
| 0.667769 | 1.529761 |
| 0.66893 | 1.529699 |
| 0.670093 | 1.529637 |
| 0.671258 | 1.529576 |
| 0.672425 | 1.529515 |
| 0.673594 | 1.529454 |
| 0.674765 | 1.529393 |
| 0.675939 | 1.529333 |
| 0.677114 | 1.529273 |
| 0.678291 | 1.529213 |
| 0.679471 | 1.529153 |
| 0.680652 | 1.529094 |
| 0.681835 | 1.529035 |
| 0.683021 | 1.528976 |
| 0.684209 | 1.528918 |
| 0.685398 | 1.52886 |
| 0.68659 | 1.528802 |
| 0.687784 | 1.528744 |
| 0.68898 | 1.528687 |
| 0.690177 | 1.52863 |
| 0.691378 | 1.528573 |
| 0.69258 | 1.528517 |
| 0.693784 | 1.52846 |
| 0.69499 | 1.528404 |
| 0.696199 | 1.528348 |
| 0.697409 | 1.528293 |
| 0.698622 | 1.528238 |
| 0.699836 | 1.528183 |
| 0.701053 | 1.528128 |
| 0.702272 | 1.528073 |
| 0.703493 | 1.528019 |
| 0.704716 | 1.527965 |
| 0.705942 | 1.527911 |
| 0.707169 | 1.527857 |
| 0.708399 | 1.527804 |
| 0.70963 | 1.527751 |
| 0.710864 | 1.527698 |
| 0.7121 | 1.527646 |
| 0.713338 | 1.527593 |
| 0.714579 | 1.527541 |
| 0.715821 | 1.527489 |
| 0.717066 | 1.527437 |
| 0.718312 | 1.527386 |
| 0.719561 | 1.527335 |
| 0.720813 | 1.527284 |
| 0.722066 | 1.527233 |
| 0.723321 | 1.527183 |
| 0.724579 | 1.527132 |
| 0.725839 | 1.527082 |
| 0.727101 | 1.527032 |
| 0.728365 | 1.526983 |
| 0.729631 | 1.526933 |
| 0.7309 | 1.526884 |
| 0.732171 | 1.526835 |
| 0.733444 | 1.526786 |
| 0.734719 | 1.526738 |
| 0.735997 | 1.526689 |
| 0.737276 | 1.526641 |
| 0.738558 | 1.526593 |
| 0.739842 | 1.526546 |
| 0.741129 | 1.526498 |
| 0.742417 | 1.526451 |
| 0.743708 | 1.526404 |
| 0.745001 | 1.526357 |
| 0.746297 | 1.52631 |
| 0.747594 | 1.526264 |
| 0.748894 | 1.526218 |
| 0.750196 | 1.526172 |
| 0.751501 | 1.526126 |
| 0.752807 | 1.52608 |
| 0.754116 | 1.526035 |
| 0.755427 | 1.52599 |
| 0.756741 | 1.525944 |
| 0.758057 | 1.5259 |
| 0.759375 | 1.525855 |
| 0.760695 | 1.52581 |
| 0.762018 | 1.525766 |
| 0.763343 | 1.525722 |
| 0.76467 | 1.525678 |
| 0.765999 | 1.525635 |
| 0.767331 | 1.525591 |
| 0.768665 | 1.525548 |
| 0.770002 | 1.525505 |
| 0.771341 | 1.525462 |
| 0.772682 | 1.525419 |
| 0.774025 | 1.525376 |
| 0.775371 | 1.525334 |
| 0.776719 | 1.525292 |
| 0.77807 | 1.52525 |
| 0.779423 | 1.525208 |
| 0.780778 | 1.525166 |
| 0.782135 | 1.525125 |
| 0.783495 | 1.525083 |
| 0.784858 | 1.525042 |
| 0.786222 | 1.525001 |
| 0.787589 | 1.52496 |
| 0.788959 | 1.52492 |
| 0.790331 | 1.524879 |
| 0.791705 | 1.524839 |
| 0.793081 | 1.524799 |
| 0.79446 | 1.524759 |
| 0.795842 | 1.524719 |
| 0.797225 | 1.52468 |
| 0.798611 | 1.52464 |
| 0.8 | 1.524601 |
Optical transmission calculator
Free-standing sample in vacuum, normal incidence- Transmittance T
- —
- Reflectance R
- —
Fresnel reflection calculator
- Rp
- —
- Rs
- —
- R = (Rp+Rs)/2
- —
- Phase φp
- —
- Phase φs
- —
- Brewster angle θB
- —
- Critical angle θC
- —
29.9 °C. Ordinary ray (o).