The difference between a uniaxial and a biaxial crystal is that a uniaxial crystal has 1 optic axes, while a biaxial crystal has 2 optic axes.
Chat with our AI personalities
Uniaxial crystals have one optic axis, where the refractive index is the same in all directions perpendicular to it. Biaxial crystals have two optic axes, with different refractive indices along each direction. This causes different light paths and behaviors in biaxial crystals compared to uniaxial ones.