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In a uniaxial crystal there is an optic axis, an extraordinary axis, and an ordinary axis. The optic axis is not the direction in which we plan to propagate light. The light is propagating in a direction such that the electric field might oscillate parallel to the optic axis. I have included a hand-drawn diagram below.

  • What about the crystal determines how the optic axis is oriented?

  • Is one of the principal axes (ordinary / extraordinary) always parallel to the optic axis?

  • How is the ordinary axis distinguished from the extraordinary?

What happens if I propagate light along the optic axis? In a uniaxial crystal, is there a third refractive index that comes into play?

Diagram showing light propagation vector (k) entering a uniaxial crystal

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  • $\begingroup$ This is a good place to start looking - rp-photonics.com/birefringence.html $\endgroup$
    – mmesser314
    Commented Sep 29, 2023 at 2:18
  • $\begingroup$ This is covered reasonably well in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birefringence - "The terms "ordinary" and "extraordinary" are still applied to the polarization components perpendicular to and not perpendicular to the optic axis respectively" $\endgroup$
    – Jon Custer
    Commented Sep 29, 2023 at 13:10
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for linking these really obscure websites. I never would have thought to look into this on my own. Naturally I posted on stack exchange hoping to receive links to other websites instead of a succinct explanation. $\endgroup$
    – Benzene enthusiast
    Commented Oct 2, 2023 at 6:20

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