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Joined 2026-09-21 Message
Hanbury Brown and Twiss effect 2026-10-18
Robert Hanbury Brown and Richard Q. Twiss sought angular sizes through correlations of detected light intensities. Their method multiplies detector outputs after detection, whereas a Michelson interferometer combines fields before detection.[ref]
Correlation between Photons in two Coherent Beams of Light by Robert Hanbury Brown and Richard Quentin Twiss. 1956, Nature 177, pp. 27–29, accessible opening paragraphs
A monochromatic discharge source illuminated a half-silvered beam splitter and two photodetectors. The averaged current product showed an excess near coincidence. Moving one detector introduced a delay that removed it, supplying a control. Slow response weakened the peak. This photon bunching is compatible with fluctuating classical light intensity.[ref]
One Hundred Years of Light Quanta by Roy Jay Glauber. 2005 individual Nobel lecture, pp. 86–88, figures 3–4