Talbot Effect

Near-field diffraction effect in which a periodic grating self-images at regular Talbot lengths — also seen with matter waves.

Specifications & Metrics

type

Atom Optics

originator

Henry Fox Talbot

introduced

1836

Core Principles & Analysis

• A diffraction effect first observed in 1836 by Henry Fox Talbot.
• The regular self-imaging distance is called the Talbot length, and the repeated images are called self images or Talbot images.
• It occurs with periodic gratings, including in matter-wave optics.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Talbot effect