Additional Info

• ID Code: L3-13
• Purpose: Show spherical aberration in a spherical mirror.
• Description:

  Spherical aberration can be shown using a number of rays to show how they focus. The number and spacing of rays can be changed by choice of slit baffle and changing the position of the baffle. A baffle with pairs of rays equidistant from the optical axis of different colors can be used to emphasize the difference between pairs of rays.

  Using a rectangular open baffle the caustic can be illustrated, as in the photograph at the right above.

• Availability: Available
• References: REFERENCES: (PIRA 6A20.24) See also Demonstration L3-24: OPTICAL BOARD - SPHERICAL AND PARABOLIC MIRRORS, which illustrates the focusing difference between spherical and parabolic concave mirrors.