SPT 1106: OPTICS AND WAVES 2025
Geometrical Optics: Reflection at plane and spherical surfaces, plane mirrors, spherical
mirrors; mirror formula
The law of reflection: plane surface.
When light reflects from a plane surface as shown below, the angle that the reflected ray
makes with the normal (line perpendicular to the surface) at the point of incidence is always
equal to the angle the incident ray makes with the same normal. Note carefully that the
incident ray, reflected ray, and normal always lie in the same plane.
Figure 1. Law of reflection: Angle B equals angle A.
In this study of geometrical optics we shall consider only smooth surfaces that give specular
(regular, geometric) reflections (Figure 2) and ignore ragged, uneven surfaces that give rise to
diffuse (irregular) reflections.
Figure .2
Based on the law of reflection, we observe that, for the specular reflection, each of the
incident, parallel rays reflects off the surface at the same angle, thereby remaining parallel in
reflection
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as a group. In Figure 2.b, where the surface is made up of many small, randomly oriented
plane surfaces, each ray reflects in a direction different from its neighbor, even though each
ray does obey the law of reflection at its own small surface segment.
Images formed with plane mirrors
Images with mirrors are formed when many nonparallel rays from a given point on a source
are reflected from the mirror surface, converge, and form a corresponding image point. When
this happens, point by point for an extended object, an image of the object, point by point, is
formed.
Image formation in a plane mirror is illustrated in several sketches shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3: Image formation in plane mirrors
In Figure 3. a, point object S sends nonparallel rays toward a plane mirror, which reflects
them as shown. The law of reflection ensures that pairs of triangles like SNP and S′NP are
equal, so that all reflected rays appear to originate at the image point S′, which lies along the
normal line SN, and at such depth that the image distance S′N equals the object distance SN.
The eye sees a point image at S′ in exactly the same way it would see a real point object
placed
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there. Since the actual rays do not exist below the mirror surface, the image is said to be a
virtual image. The image S′ cannot be projected on a screen as in the case of a real image. An
extended object, such as the arrow in Figure 3 b, is imaged point by point by a plane mirror
surface in similar fashion. Each object point has its image point along its normal to the mirror
surface and as far below the reflecting surface as the object point lies above the surface. Note
that image position does not depend on the position of the eye.
The construction in Figure 3.b also makes clear that the image size is identical to the object
size, giving a magnification of unity. In addition, the transverse orientations of object and
image are the same. A right-handed object, however, appears left-handed in its image.
In Figure 3.c, where the mirror does not lie directly below the object, the mirror plane may be
extended to determine the position of the image as seen by an eye positioned to receive
reflected rays originating at the object. Figure 3.d illustrates multiple images of a point object
O formed by two perpendicular mirrors. Each image, I and I2, results from a single reflection
in one of the two mirrors, but a third image I3 is also present, formed by sequential
reflections from both mirrors.
Note that for plane mirrors
A plane mirror is simply a mirror with a flat surface; all of us use plane mirrors every day, so
we've got plenty of experience with them. Images produced by plane mirrors have a number
of properties, including:
1. the image produced is upright
2. the image is the same size as the object (i.e., the magnification is m = 1)
3. the image is the same distance from the mirror as the object appears to be (i.e., the
image distance = the object distance)
4. the image is a virtual image, as opposed to a real image, because the light rays do not
actually pass through the image. This also implies that an image could not be focused
on a screen placed at the location where the image is.
Reflection from a curved surface
Curved Mirrors - A curved mirror is a mirror with a curved reflective surface, which may be
either convex (bulging outward) or concave (bulging inward). Most curved mirrors have
surfaces that are shaped like part of a sphere.
With spherical mirrors, reflection of light occurs at a curved surface. The law of reflection
holds, since at each point on the curved surface, one can draw a surface tangent and erect a
normal to a point P on the surface where the light is incident, as shown in Figure 4.
One then applies the law of reflection at point P just as was illustrated in Figure 1, with the
incident and reflected rays making the same angles (A and B) with the normal to the surface at
P.
Figure 4
Since point P can be moved anywhere along the curved surface and a normal drawn there,
we can always find the direction of the reflected ray by applying the law of reflection
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A convex mirror, also known as a diverging mirror, has a reflective surface that curves
outward, facing the light source. This means the mirror’s reflective side is the exterior of a
spherical shape. Because convex mirrors cause light rays to spread out (diverge) rather than
converge, they cannot focus light and are not used for that purpose.
concave mirror
A concave mirror, also called a converging mirror, has a reflective surface that curves inward,
away from the incoming light. When the inner surface of the sphere acts as the mirror, it
directs light rays inward toward a single focal point. This ability to concentrate light makes
concave mirrors ideal for applications that require.
Radius of curvature - The radius of curvature of a curved mirror is defined as the radius of
the hollow glass sphere of which the spherical mirror was (previously) a part. Any line drawn
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from the center of curvature C to the mirror surface meets it at right angle (90 degree) and
equals the radius of curvature.
Pole - The pole is the geometric center of the curved mirror.
Principal axis - The principal axis of a curved mirror is an imaginary straight line that passes
through both the pole (the mirror’s vertex) and the center of curvature. It serves as the axis of
symmetry for the mirror and is often referred to as the optical axis. In spherical mirrors, this
axis defines the path along which light travels symmetrically, connecting the mirror’s surface
to its geometric center.
Principal focus - The principal focus is defined as the point on the principal axis where the
light rays traveling parallel to the principal axis after reflection actually meet (for a concave
mirror) or appear to diverge from(for a convex mirror). The principal focus is in front of the
concave mirror and is behind the convex mirror.
Focal length - Focal length is the distance between the pole and the principal focus of a
curved mirror. Note that the focal length is half the radius of curvature for spherical mirrors
having small apertures.
Rules of reflection
Incident ray parallel to the
principal axis after
reflection will pass
through the focus of a
concave mirror.
Incident ray passing
through the focus after
reflection will be parallel
to the principal axis.
Incident ray passing
through the center of
curvature will travel back
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along the same line after
reflection.
Image formation in a concave mirror
object at
infinity
Object
beyond
center of
curvature
object at
center of
curvature
object
between
center of
curvature
and focus
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object at
focus
object
between
focus and
the
mirror
Image formation in convex mirror
object at
infinity
object near
the mirror
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Task 1.
With the aid of a well-labelled diagram, derive the mirror equation for a concave mirror.
Sign Convention for Spherical Mirrors
The following sign convention is used for measuring various distances in the ray diagrams of
spherical mirrors:
• Object is always placed to the left of mirror
• All distances are measured from the pole of the mirror.
• Distances measured in the direction of the incident ray are positive and the distances
measured in the direction opposite to that of the incident rays are negative.
• Distancesmeasured along y-axis above the principal axis are positive and that
measured along y-axis below the principal axis are negative.
Sign conventions
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Limitations of Ray Diagrams and the Need for Equations
Ray diagrams are valuable tools for visualizing how images form in mirrors, offering
qualitative insights into the position, orientation, and size of an image. However, they lack the
precision needed for quantitative analysis. While ray diagrams can estimate image location
and size, they do not yield exact numerical values for image distance or magnification. To
obtain accurate measurements, one must apply the Mirror Equation and the Magnification
Equation, which provide the mathematical framework for calculating these quantities.
The mirror equation expresses the quantitative relationship between the object distance (do),
the image distance (di), and the focal length (f). The equation is stated as follows:
1 1 1
��= ����+ ����
The magnification equation relates the ratio of the image distance and object distance to the
ratio of the image height (hi) and object height (ho). The magnification equation is stated as
follows:
��=ℎ��
��
ℎ��=− ��
����
Understanding Magnification and Its Implications
A magnification (m) value of ±1 indicates that the image is the same size as the
object. • If |m| > 1, the image is larger than the object.
• If |��|<1, the image is smaller than the object.
The sign of m reveals the image orientation:
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•A positive magnification means the image is upright relative to the object. •
A negative magnification indicates the image is inverted.
By combining the Mirror Equation and the Magnification Equation, one can calculate both
the image distance and image height, provided the object distance, object height, and focal
length are known.
As a demonstration of the effectiveness of the mirror equation and magnification equation,
consider the following example problem and its solution.
Example 1
A 4.00-cm tall light bulb is placed a distance of 45.7 cm from a concave mirror having a focal
length of 15.2 cm. Determine the image distance and the image size.
Solution:
Like all problems in physics, begin by the identification of the known
information. ho = 4.0 cm do = 45.7 cm f = 15.2 cm
Next identify the unknown quantities that you wish to solve for.
di = ??? hi = ???
To determine the image distance, the mirror equation must be used. The following lines
represent the solution to the image distance; substitutions and algebraic steps are shown.
1/f = 1/do + 1/di
1/(15.2 cm) = 1/(45.7 cm) + 1/di
0.0658 cm-1 = 0.0219 cm-1 + 1/di
0.0439 cm-1 = 1/di
di = 22.8 cm
The final answer is rounded to the third significant digit.
To determine the image height, the magnification equation is needed. Since three of the four
quantities in the equation (disregarding the M) are known, the fourth quantity can be
calculated. The solution is shown below.
hi/ho = - di/do
hi /(4.0 cm) = - (22.8 cm)/(45.7 cm)
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hi = - (4.0 cm) • (22.8 cm)/(45.7 cm) hi =
-1.99 cm
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