Thin film interference on Airplane cockpitThere is a great chance that when you are at the airport w
Thin film interference on Airplane cockpitThere is a great chance that when you are at the airport waiting for your flight, you witness these rainbow patterns on cockpit windows. This is due to thin film interference, a topic which we have explored occasionally on FYPhysics!But where is the thin film on an airplane window? Well, commercial airplane cockpit windows have conductive coating (Indium Tin Oxide- ITO) inside the glass (see image below for reference). Image SourceHeat is produced by applying voltage across the coating, which is used to deice/defrost the windows. The thin film interference pattern that you see is due to this layered nature of the glass.Have a good one!* You can also see interference pattern on windows of smaller airplanes but they are not due to the conductive coating and the exact reason would depend on the aircraft type. ** For a more elaborate answer on how airplane heating systems work, check out : Link1 Link2 -- source link
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