Photoelastic analysis of frozen stressed specimens using spectral contents analysis

The complete birefringence, or isochromatic fringe order, in stress-frozen photoelastic models has been found by measuring the spectral contents of individual points. A calibration procedure is proposed. The effects of non-uniform birefringence and dispersion of birefringence are considered. The results are presented from the analysis of models of a plate with a central hole and a disk subject to three radial loads.