A method is described for obtaining the two-dimensional distribution of the refractive index profile (RIP) in graded fiber-optic elements by recording the total interferogram from a slice of the element followed by an analysis of the interferogram using a modified INTERF program. A method that makes use of the obtained results of the mathematical analysis of the INTERF program is proposed for determining the exponent (g) of the approximated RIP in order to estimate the frequency bandwidth of a fiber-optic communication line.