Abstract

A review of the early papers on the curvature of spectral lines is presented. The formulas for the oblique refraction of a light ray incident upon a boundary between two media are derived by means of Fermat's principle. These results are applied to the prismatic refraction of the oblique rays that originate at the off-axis positions of the spectrometer entrance slit. Three algebraic forms for presenting the resultant curvature of the slit image are given. Graphical results are presented relating the radius of curvature with the index of refraction of the prism at constant prism angles. Comparison is made with the curvature caused by reflection from a plane grating.

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