Mirrors and Lenses

Physics
Spring 2002
Types of Mirrors
 Plane mirror- flat mirror
– Ex. everyday, bathroom mirror
 Convex mirrors - bend outward
– Ex. the back of a spoon, sideview mirrors
 Concave mirrors - bend inward
– Ex. satellite dishes, the front of a spoon
Plane mirrors

 Image is behind the mirror - virtual

image
 Image is reversed back to front
Convex mirrors

 Image is behind the mirror - virtual

image
 Image is much smaller than object
Concave mirrors
 Principal Axis is from C to A
 For small angles, the focal point is half
the distance between the mirror and the
Center, C.

F f
C A

r
Spherical vs. Parabolic mirrors
 Spherical mirrors do not focus
everything at one point - spherical
aberation.
 Parabolic mirros DO focus everything at
one point - used for flashlights, car
headlights, etc.
Ray Diagrams
 Incident light rays parallel to the
principal axis are reflected through the
focal point.
 Incident rays through the focal point are
reflected parallel to the principal axis.
P1

P2 I2

I1
Mirror equation
 The distance from the mirror to the
object and the mirror to the image are
related.
1 + 1 = 1
do di f

do

di
Mirror equation ctd.
 You can also find the magnification of
an image.
hi = -di = m
ho do
 Both m and hi are negative - image is
inverted.
ho

hi
Example
 An object 2.0 cm high is 30.0 cm from a
concave mirror. The radius of curvature
is 20.0 cm. What is the location and
size of the image?
1 + 1 = 1
do di f
1 = 1 - 1 = -0.0667 /cm
di 10 cm 30 cm
di = 15 cm
Example
 An object 2.0 cm high is 30.0 cm from a
concave mirror. The radius of curvature
is 20.0 cm. What is the location and
size of the image?
hi = -di = m
ho do
hi = -di x h
o
do
hi = 15 cm x 2.0 cm = -1 cm
30 cm