Thin-film interference
Videos
Thin-film interference occurs when light waves reflected by the upper and lower boundaries of a thin film interfere with one another, increasing reflection at some wavelengths and decreasing it at oth
Diesel fuel and water are immiscible, causing thin-film interference
Thin-film interference caused by ITO defrosting coating on an Airbus cockpit window.
Gasoline on water shows a pattern of bright and dark fringes when illuminated with 589nm laser light.
The blue wing patches of the European peacock butterfly (Aglais io) are due to thin-film interference.
Iridescence
Videos
Iridescence is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear gradually to change colour as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Iridescence is caused by wave interference of light
Thin-film interference
…interferometry is an emerging technique for measuring refractive index and thickness of molecular scale thin films and how these change when stimulated. Iridescence caused by thin-film interference is a commonly observed phenomenon in nature, being found in a variety of plants and animals. One of the first known…
Iridescence in soap bubbles
An iridescent biofilm on the surface of a fish tank diffracts the reflected light, displaying the entire spectrum of colours. Red is seen from longer angles of incidence than blue.
The pearlescent shell of a black-lip pearl oyster