Geometrical Optics Flashcards
Reflection
the rebounding of incident light waves at the boundary of a medium
law of reflection
states that the incident angle will equal the angle of reflection, as measured form the normal
spherical mirrors
have centers and radii of curvature as well as focal points
concave mirrors
are converging systems and can produce real, inverted images or virtual, upright images, depending on the placement of the object relative to the focus
convex mirrors
are diverging systems and will only produce virtual, upright images
plane mirrors
produces virtual, upright images; these images are always the same size as the object. they may be thought of as spherical mirrors with infinite radii of curvature.
refraction
the bending of light as it passes from one medium to another. this speed change causes refraction
the amount of refraction depends on the wavelength of the light involved; this behavior causes ____ of light through prism
dispersion
Snell’s law (the law of refraction)
states that there is an inverse relationship between the index of refraction and the sine of the angle of refraction (measured from the normal)
total internal reflection
occurs when light cannot be refracted out of a medium and is instead reflected back inside the medium
happens when light moves from a medium with a higher index of refraction to a medium with a lower index of refraction with a high incident angle
critical angle
the minimum incident angle at which total internal reflection occurs
lenses
refract light to form images of objects
thin symmetrical lenses have focal points on each side.
convex lenses
are converging systems and can produce real, inverted images or virtual, upright images
concave lenses
are diverging systems and will only produce virtual, upright images
lenses with non - negligible thickness require use of the
lensmarker’s equation
images created by a mirror can either be
real or virtue
an image is said to be real if
the light actually converges at the position of the image
an image is said to be virtue if
the light only appears to be coming form the position of the image but does not actually converge there.
plane mirrors (flat reflective surfaces)
cause neither convergence nor divergence or elected light rays
plane mirrors always create
virtual images
center of curvature
a point on the optical axis located at a distance equal to the radio of curvature from the vertex of the mirror
focal length (f)
the distance between the focal point (F) and the mirror
using the image distance calculation,
if the image has positive distance (i>0), it is
a REAL image which implies that the imagine is in FRONT of the mirror
using the image distance calculation,
if the image has negative distance (i
VIRTUAL and thus located behind the mirror
