Do you know what do cameras, eye glasses, telescopes and microscopes have in common?
The object at the core of these devices is an optical lens.
A lens is a transparent object and light is refracted when it passes through the lens. Lens is used in many optical instruments such as cameras, microscope, telescope, optical glasses.
Lens are broadly classified into two types namely
- Divergent Lens
- Convergent Lens
Convergent Lens
A convergent lens is a lens that causes to bend the light in a way that they converge at a single point on the opposite side of the lens known as focal point.
One of the distinguishing features of convergent lens is that they are thicker in the middle than at edges.
Following are some of the types of convergent lens:
Applications of Convergent Lens
A convergent lens has various applications across different fields due to its ability to focus light. They are mainly used in the situations where we have to view the enlarge object. Some of the applications of convergent lens are as follows:
- Microscopes – Convergent lens are used in microscope to view very small objects by magnifying them.
- Telescopes – It is used in telescopes in order to view distant objects.
- Magnifying glass – Magnifying glass are also made up of convergent lens to enlarge objects for better visibility.
- Eye glasses – Convergent lens are used in eye glasses or contact lenses to correct far sightedness.
Divergent Lens
A divergent lens is a type of lens that causes light to spread out or diverge after passing the light through it. When the parallel light rays hit on the lens surface of divergent lens, they diverge outward as though they appear originated from a single point called focal point.
One of the distinguishing features of divergent lens is that they are thinner in the middle than at edges.
Following are some of the types of divergent lens:
What are applications of Divergent Lens?
- Beam Expanding – Divergent lenses are used to expand or shape laser beams for applications in scientific research, medical instruments, or optical communications.
- Eye glasses – Divergent lens are used in eye glasses or contact lenses to correct near sightedness.
- Optical Correction in Devices – They are employed in various optical devices to correct aberrations or adjust the field of view.