Re: dielectric constant

[Jack Uretsky <jlu@HEP.ANL.GOV>]

A good place to start looking for the answers to such questions is the
Feynman Lectures (also, Britannica).  See Feynman Vol. 2, Chapters 10, et
seq.
                                Regards,
                                        Jack



On Sun, 7 Jul 2002, Ludwik Kowalski wrote:

> I am puzzled by the fact that the the index of refraction
> calculated as the sqr(dielectric_constant) is always
> larger, typically by a factor of 2 or 3, than what is
> measured in optics. To remove the inconsistency I
> would have to assume that the index of refraction
> at optical frequencies is much lower than what it is
> in electrostatics. Why is it so?
> Ludwik Kowalski

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