三棱镜是光学棱镜中的一种形式，在外观上呈现几何的三角形，是光学棱镜中最常见，也是一般人所熟知的，但并不是最常用到的棱镜。三棱镜最常用于光线的色散，这是将光线分解成为不同的光谱成分。利用不同波长的光线因为折射率不同，在折射时会偏转不同的角度，便会造成色散的现象。这种效应也被用来对棱镜物质进行高精密度的折射系数测量。

物质的折射系数固然在不同的波长会有所不同，但有些物质的折射系数对波长的变化比其他物质强烈（色散非常明显）。棱镜的顶角（在上图中，上面的角）能够影响到棱镜色散时的特性。通常，要适当的选择光线射入的角度和射出的角度，当角度接近布儒斯特角（Brewster angle）时，在折射时造成的损耗最小。

In optics, a dispersive prism is a type of optical prism, usually having the shape of a geometrical triangular prism. It is the most widely known type of optical prism, although perhaps not the most common in actual use. Triangular prisms are used to disperse light, that is, to break light up into its spectral components (the colors of the rainbow). This dispersion occurs because the angle of refraction is dependent on the refractive index of a certain material which in turn is slightly dependent on the wavelength of light that is travelling through it. This means that different wavelengths of light will travel at different speeds, and so the light will disperse into the colours of the visible spectrum, with longer wavelengths (red, yellow) being refracted less than shorter wavelengths (violet, blue).