Refractive indices of common solvents and solutions at 1550  nm.

Using a large-angle refractometer, the refractive indices of water, methanol, acetonitrile, acetone, ethanol, formaldehyde solution, 2-propanol, hexanes, 1-propanol, 2-butanol, tetrahydrofuran, dichloromethane, 1,4-dioxane, cyclohexane, N,N-dimethylformamide, ethylene glycol, N,N-dimethylacetamide, chloroform, glycerol, trichloroethylene, dimethylsulfoxide, p-xylene, ethylbenzene, toluene, m-xylene, benzene, and o-xylene were measured at 1550 nm and compared to literature values. In addition, the refractive indices of 48 aqueous sucrose solutions, 34 aqueous sodium chloride solutions, 40 DMSO-water, 40 ethylene glycol-water, and 40 glycerol-water mixtures were also measured at different concentrations and fit with third-order polynomial expressions. This study provides near-infrared refractive indices that were not previously available and may help with the calibration of refractive index sensors that operate at or near 1550 nm. (C) 2016 Optical Society of America