Interferometric Determination of Orientation and Some Optical Parameters of annealed Polyester Fibres

Abstract

Multiple-beam Fizeau fringes in transmission have been applied to annealed PET fibres, to determine the refractive indices of their skin and core layers for plane polarized monochromatic light at λ =546.1 nm, vibrating parallel and perpendicular to the fibre axis. We obtained the optical orientation parameters by applying the equations used by Hermans and Ward. Some structural parameters such as electric polarizability were determined. The density of the samples studied was measured by a system based on the theory of vibrating strings. The density and optical results were used to calculate the degree of crystallinity, the mean square density fluctuation, the form birefringence, the number of monomeric units per unit volume, the harmonic mean polarizability of the dielectric, and the harmonic mean specific refractive index. The generalized Lorentz-Lorenz equation given by de Vries was used to determine the structural parameters of annealed PET fibres. Comparisons between the experimental results and those obtained by using the Lorentz-Lorenz and Hermans equations are given. Refractive index profiles are also given. The results show the new reorientation and layer changes accompanying annealing under different conditions. Illustrations are given of multiple-beam microinterferograms in transmission.