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The focal point F and focal length f of a positive (convex) lens, a negative (concave) lens, a concave mirror, and a convex mirror.. The focal length of an optical system is a measure of how strongly the system converges or diverges light; it is the inverse of the system's optical power.
In other words, a real image is an image which is located in the plane of convergence for the light rays that originate from a given object. Examples of real images include the image produced on a detector in the rear of a camera, and the image produced on an eyeball retina (the camera and eye focus light through an internal convex lens).
In both diagrams, f is the focal point, O is the object, and I is the virtual image, shown in grey. Solid blue lines indicate (real) light rays and dashed blue lines indicate backward extension of the real rays. In optics, the image of an object is defined as the collection of focus points of light rays coming from the object.
The signs are reversed for the back surface of the lens: R 2 is positive if the surface is concave, and negative if it is convex. This is an arbitrary sign convention; some authors choose different signs for the radii, which changes the equation for the focal length. For a thin lens, d is much smaller than one of the radii of curvature (either ...
Lenses are characterized by their focal length: a converging lens has positive focal length, while a diverging lens has negative focal length. Smaller focal length indicates that the lens has a stronger converging or diverging effect. The focal length of a simple lens in air is given by the lensmaker's equation. [44]
For concave mirrors, whether the image is virtual or real depends on how large the object distance is compared to the focal length. If the 1 / f {\displaystyle 1/f} term is larger than the 1 / d o {\displaystyle 1/d_{\mathrm {o} }} term, then 1 / d i {\displaystyle 1/d_{\mathrm {i} }} is positive and the image is real.
A system is focal if an object ray parallel to the axis is conjugate to an image ray that intersects the optical axis. The intersection of the image ray with the optical axis is the focal point F ′ in image space. Focal systems also have an axial object point F such that any ray through F is conjugate to an image ray parallel to the optical axis.
Using a positive lens of focal length f, a virtual image results when S 1 < f, the lens thus being used as a magnifying glass (rather than if S 1 ≫ f as for a camera). Using a negative lens ( f < 0 ) with a real object ( S 1 > 0 ) can only produce a virtual image ( S 2 < 0 ), according to the above formula.