Stress in glass
Channel: RV Glass
Date: 2022-11-22

When glass is worked by a flame, parts can become stressed due to tension buildup. This can potentially break glass objects. Therefore objects should be heat treated, or annealed properly to reduce this stress. The stress in the glass can be observed using an optical device called a polarimeter. This instrument you can easily make yourself by using a small linear polariser (polaroid) and a laptop screen. The stress in the glass creates birefringence and this changes light polarisation, that is passing through it. The colours and bands are therefore indicative of where the stress occurs.