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Optical Lens Physics

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Optical Lens Physics

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Lenses are the optical components that form the basic building blocks of many common optical devices, including cameras, binoculars, microscopes, and telescopes. Lenses are essentially light-controlling elements and so are exploited for light gathering and image formation. Curved mirrors (see Optical Mirror Physics) and lenses can accomplish many of same things in terms of light collection and image formation. However, lenses tend to be superior in terms of image formation because they are transparent, which allows light to be transmitted directly along the axis to the detector whereas mirrors require an off-axis geometry. Mirrors are typically preferred in terms of light collection as they can be made significantly more lightweight than lenses and therefore can achieve larger diameters and light collecting ability. This section discusses the mechanism of refraction that underlies the operation of a lens, issues that affect its performance, and the different lens types.

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