At one wavelength

Refractive index n: 1.0007
Extinction coefficient k: 0

Permittivity ε₁: 1.00141
Permittivity ε₂: 0

Absorption coefficient α: 0 cm⁻¹
Penetration depth δ = λ/(2πk): — nm

Abbe number V_d: —
Chromatic dispersion dn/dλ: -7.30813e-05 µm⁻¹

Group index n_g: 1.00075
Group velocity dispersion: — fs²/mm

Dispersion parameter D: — ps/(nm·km)
Photon energy: 2.11001 eV

ε = (n + ik)², α = 4πk/λ, n_g = 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

# Xe (Xenon): Koch 1949: n 0.230–0.623 µm
xe = ls.fetch_refractiveindex("main", "Xe", "Koch", ref="c5c2f188e848453def5970e347399d653df2ffc2")
print(xe.range_nm)  # (230.209, 623.437) nm
eps = xe.eps([379])  # 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_9c8a82c0cefa/lightsmith"
xe = ls.Tabulated.model_validate(json.load(urllib.request.urlopen(url)))
print(xe.source)  # citation and provenance travel with the data

Any dataset here, as the library's Tabulated material (xe/koch-1949).

# ... load xe as above, then:
sim = ls.Simulation(
    particles=[ls.Particle(shape=ls.Sphere(radius_nm=50), material=xe)],
    medium_index=1.0,
    wavelengths=ls.WavelengthRange(start_nm=400, stop_nm=623, 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"]).

Materials guide Open a sphere of it in Studio Quick start Ask the community

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.

Comments and conditions

Wavelength is λ_air at 15 °C

References

J. Koch. Kungl. Fysiografiska Sällskapets i Lund Förhandlingar (Proceedings of the Royal Physiographic Society at Lund) 19, 173 (1949) (as cited in P. J. Leonard. Refractive indices, Verdet constants, and polarizabilities of the inert gases. Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables 14, 21-37 (1974))

doi:10.1016/s0092-640x(74)80028-8 Refractive indices, Verdet constants, and Polarizabilities of the inert gases, Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables (1974)

Cite

P.J. Leonard. Refractive indices, Verdet constants, and Polarizabilities of the inert gases. Atomic Data and Nuclear Data Tables, 14, 21-37 (1974), doi:10.1016/s0092-640x(74)80028-8; Data from the refractiveindex.info database (M. N. Polyanskiy, Sci. Data 11, 94 (2024), doi:10.1038/s41597-023-02898-2)

Data

20 rows as published

CSV comma separated TXT tab separated YAML n, k Full database record original YAML All quantities CSV JSON metadata

Xe (Xenon), Koch 1949: n 0.230–0.623 µm: n and k versus wavelength
λ (µm)	n
0.230209	1.00085519
0.234555	1.00084664
0.237999	1.00084025
0.2446905	1.00082907
0.2464068	1.0008264
0.2576295	1.00081078
0.267499	1.00079923
0.2752775	1.00079124
0.2759712	1.0007906
0.2856969	1.00078186
0.2893595	1.00077885
0.2925406	1.00077637
0.3341478	1.00075143
0.3801658	1.0007343
0.4108066	1.00072623
0.4916036	1.00071241
0.567717	1.00070477
0.607262	1.00070188
0.612327	1.00070157
0.623437	1.00070091

Optical transmission calculator

Free-standing sample in vacuum, normal incidence

Transmittance T: —
Reflectance R: —

Fresnel reflection calculator

R_p: —
R_s: —
R = (R_p+R_s)/2: —
Phase φ_p: —
Phase φ_s: —
Brewster angle θ_B: —
Critical angle θ_C: —

Plot