Refractive index measured by laser beam displacement at λ=1064 nm for solvents and deuterated solvents.

The refractive index of a liquid is determined with 0.0003 accuracy from measurements of laser beam displacement by a liquid-filled standard 10 mm spectrophotometer cell. The apparatus and methods are described and the results of measurements at λ=1064 nm and T=25.0 °C for 30 solvents and deuterated solvents are presented. Several sources of potential systematic errors as large as 0.003 are identified, the most important being the curvature of the liquid cell windows. The measurements are analyzed accounting for the significant imperfections of the apparatus.