Re: Chrenkov Light

["H.B.Knowles" <hbknowls@ix.netcom.com>]

At 19:26 01/27/2000 Thursday-0600, you wrote:
> RADSAFERS,
>    Are the various wavelengths for Chrenkov light mentioned in
> this thread
> only maxima?  (i.e., is Cherenkov light monochromatic?  It does
> not appear
> to be, at least in water.)
>     Pulsing a TRIGA reactor by blowing all the control
> rods out
> of the core simultaneously by compressed air (note to power reactor
> people:  Don't try this at your site!) produces a flash of
> brilliantly white light.  This has been known to seriously
> frighten
> visitors from certain national labs when a pulse is sprung on them
> for the first time.  Especially so because it is accompanied by
> a
> loud bang from the compressed air.
> **********************************************************************
> William G. Nabor
> University of California, Irvine
> EH&S Office
> Irvine, CA,  92697-2725
> WGNABOR@UCI.EDU
> mailto:wgnabor@uci.edu
> **********************************************************************
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Mr. Nabor:

Cherenkove radiation is indeed polychromatic. For a good classical  description (as opposed to a quantum description, see pages 494-499 in the first (1962) edition of J. D. Jackson's Classical Electrodynamics, with special attention to Figure 14.16.

If you wish further personal correspondence, note that my email address has changed, as seen below.

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