Lenses

F F
f f

Converging Diverging
Lens Lens
 Find the focal length of a converging lens by
holding it up to a window.
(See how far away from the lens you need to hold
a piece of paper to focus the image on the paper.)

Web Link: Spherical mirrors and lenses

 Ray Tracing for Lenses
 Light passes through a lens
 There is a focal point on both sides of a lens

Converging Lens:

Ray #1:
Parallel to the axis
Refracts through F

Ray #2:
Through F
Refracts parallel to axis

Ray #3:
Through Center of
lens undeflected
Example: Camera
Example: Slide Projector
Example:
Magnifying
Glass Web Link:
Ray tracing
 Results: Ray Tracing for Converging Lenses
(in each case, draw in the 3 rays for practice)

Object distance > 2f: Image is real, smaller, and inverted

2F F F

Object between f and 2f: Image is real, larger, inverted

2F F F

Object between f and mirror: Image virtual, larger, upright

2F F F
 Now, for Diverging lenses……
Web Link: Spherical mirrors and lenses

For a Diverging Lens:

Ray #1: Parallel to the axis on the left
Refracts as if it came from F on the left
Ray #2: Heads toward F on the right
Refracts parallel to the axis on the right

Ray #3: Through the center of the lens undeflected

 2

Example: Glasses to correct nearsightedness

 Results: Ray Tracing for Diverging Lenses
(draw in the 3 rays for practice)

No matter where the object is:

Image is always virtual, smaller and upright

F F

Web Link: Ray tracing

Web Link:
Ray Tracing Summary for
Mirrors and Lenses
 These equations also work on lenses:

1 1 1 di
  m 
do di f do
The Thin Lens The Magnification
Equation Equation

But the variables are defined slightly differently

now because……….

For a mirror, a real For a lens, a real image

image was on the same is on the opposite side
side as the object as the object
 Sign conventions for Lenses

Focal length (f) Object distance (do)

+ converging
+ object on the left
- diverging

Image distance (di) Magnification (m)

+ image on the right (real) + upright
- image on the left (virtual) - inverted
Ex:

lens

13cm

book

If the image of the book is 5.0 cm below

the lens, find the focal length of the lens.
Ex:

A camera with a focal length of 50 mm takes a

photograph of a 100 m tall building from 350 m
away. How tall is the image on the film?
 The Human Eye

Web Links: Eye lens,

Vision and Eyesight

Near Point –
Closest distance the
eye can focus on Far Point –
(about 25 cm when Farthest distance
we are young) the eye can focus
on (should be  )
 Someone who is Nearsighted cannot
focus on far away objects. (Their
far point is not at infinity.)

Nearsightedness can be corrected

with diverging lenses

Here’s how it works

Ex:

Without my contact lenses, I need to stand 35 cm or

less from the TV in order to see it in focus. Find the
focal length of the contact lenses that correct my
vision.
 Someone who is Farsighted cannot
focus on objects too near.

Farsightedness can be corrected with

converging lenses

Here’s how it works

Ex:

The man has a near point of 48 cm. His

reading glasses are 2.0 cm from his eyes,
and with them on, he can read the
newspaper as close as 25 cm to his eyes.
Find the focal length of his glasses
 Lens Aberrations

1) Spherical Aberration

Can you think of two ways that this

problem could be eliminated?
2) Chromatic Aberration

How to correct this problem?

Compound
(Achromatic)
Lens