Light– Reflection and Refraction

10.1 INTRODUCTION
We see a variety of objects in the world around us. we are unable to see anything in a dark room. On
lighting up the room, things become visible. What makes things visible?
There are a number of common wonderful phenomena associated with light such as image formation by
mirrors, the twinkling of stars, the beautiful colors of a rainbow, bending of light by a medium and so on.
A study of the properties of light helps us to explore them.
10.2 PROPERTIES OF LIGHT- THE NATURE OF LIGHT
All the known properties of light are described in terms of the experiments by which they were
discovered and the many and varied demonstrations by which they are frequently illustrated
• The rectilinear propagation of light is the technical terminology applied to the principle that
"light travels in straight lines."
• Light is an Electromagnetic wave, so does not require any medium to travel.
• Light tends to travel in straight line.
• Light has dual nature i.e., wave as well as particle.
• Light casts shadow.
• Speed of light is maximum in vacuum. Its value is 3 × 108 m/s.
• When light falls on a surface, following may happen:
(i) Reflection (ii) Refraction (iii) Absorption
In this section we’ll use the ray model of light to explore two of the most important aspects of light
propagation: reflection and refraction.
10.2.1 IMPORTANT TERMS
• Translucent
• Transparent
• Opaque
• Luminous Objects
• Non-Luminous Objects

(i) Translucent
a) A material through which light can pass partially.
b) We can partly see through these objects. They can also be called partially-see-through objects.
c) The colour of this material depends on the amount of light absorbed, scattered, and reflected.
d) An object on the other side of this material is visible to some extent.
e.g : - Wax paper Colored plastic bottle
(ii) Transparent
a) A material through which light can pass completely.
b) We can clearly see through these objects. They can also be called see-through objects.
c) The colour of this material depends on the light it emits.
d) An object on the other side of this material is clearly visible.
e.g :- Spectacle , Glass
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 (iii) Opaque
a) A material through which light cannot pass at all.
b) We cannot see through these objects. They can also be called not-see-through objects.
c) The color of this material depends on the light it absorbs.
d) An object on the other side of this material is not visible at all.
e.g:- Cardboard Wooden cupboard
(iv) Luminous Objects
a) Luminous objects are objects that give out light on its own.
b) Examples of non-living things luminous objects are Sun, the stars.
c) Examples of living things luminous objects are fireflies & glow-worms.
d) We get to see luminous objects because their light enters our eyes directly
(v) Non-Luminous Objects
a) Non-luminous objects are objects that do not give out light on its own.
b) Moon is one of the examples of non-living thing and non-luminous object.
c) Tree is an example of living thing non-luminous object.
d) We get to see non-luminous objects because light is reflected from them and into our eyes.

10.2.2 REAL IMAGES

1. A real image is that image which is formed when the light rays coming from an object actually meet each
other after reflection or refraction.
2. A real image can be obtained on the screen.
3. The real image is always inverted.
4. The common example of real image is the image formed on the cinema screen

10.2.3 VIRTUAL IMAGE

1. A virtual image is that image which is formed when the light rays coming from an object do not actually
meet, but appear to meet when produced backwards.
2. These images cannot be obtained on the screen.
3. The virtual image is always erect.
4. The common example of virtual image is the image formed in the mirror when we stand in front of that
mirror.
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10.3 REFLECTION OF LIGHT
Bouncing back of light when it strikes on a polished surface like mirror is called Reflection.
The manner in which light is reflected from a surface depends on the surface’s smoothness.
Reflections are of two types: -
• Diffuse reflection.
• Specular reflection
(i) Diffuse reflection.
Light that is reflected from a rough, textured surface,
such as paper, cloth, or unpolished wood, is reflected
in many different directions and there is no single
angle of transmission or reflection
This type of reflection is called diffuse reflection.
(ii) Specular reflection.
Light reflected from smooth, shiny surfaces, such as a
mirror or water in a pond, is reflected in one direction
only.
This type of reflection is called specular reflection.
A surface is considered smooth if its surface variations are small compared with the wavelength of the
incoming light.
10.3.1 THE LAWS OF REFLECTION
1. The angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.
2. The incident ray, the reflected ray and the normal to the mirror at the point of incidence all lie in the
same plane.

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 Here,
• Angle of incidence (Ɵi)
the angle between a ray that strikes a surface and the line perpendicular to that surface at the
point of contact
• Angle of reflection (Ɵr)
the angle formed by the line perpendicular to a surface and the direction in which a reflected ray
moves
• Normal
The line perpendicular to the reflecting surface is referred to as the normal to the surface.
• Plane of incidence
The plane of the two rays and the normal, called the plane of incidence, is perpendicular to the
plane of the boundary surface between the two materials.

 The incident ray and the reflected ray lie on either side of the normal

 It therefore follows that the angle between the incoming ray and the surface equals (90° -
Ɵi), and the angle between the reflected ray and the surface equals (90° - Ɵr ).

10.3.2 TYPE OF MIRRORS
[Link] SPHERICAL MIRRORS
A curved mirror is a mirror with a curved reflecting surface. The surface may be either convex (bulging
outward) or concave (recessed inward). The curved surfaces are shaped like part of a sphere. Those type
of mirrors are known as spherical mirrors.
They are of two types:
• Concave (converging) Mirrors
• Convex (Diverging) Mirrors

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a) Concave (converging) Mirrors
I. A concave mirror is that mirror whose reflecting surface is towards the centre of the glass
sphere of which the mirror is a part.
II. In concave mirrors the reflection of light rays takes place from the inner surface while the
outer surface is polished and opaque.

b) Convex (Diverging) Mirrors

I. A convex mirror is that mirror whose reflecting surface is away from the centre of the glass
sphere of which the mirror is a part.
II. In convex mirrors the reflection of light rays takes place from the outer surface while the inner
surface is opaque.

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10.3.3 TERMS RELATED TO SPHERICAL MIRRORS
• Pole (P)
It is the middle point of the spherical mirror (P)
• Centre of curvature (C)
The Centre of the hollow glass sphere of which the mirror was
a part.
• Radius of Curvature (R)
The distance between the pole and the centre of
curvature.
• Principal axis
The line joining the pole and center of curvature.
Remember that principal axis is normal to the mirror at its
pole.
• Aperture
It is the effective diameter of the circular boundary of the
spherical mirror i.e MM’.
• Focus (F = R/2)
The point on principal axis where all the parallel light rays
to the principal axis actually meet or appear to meet after reflection.

10.3.4 IMPORTANT SYMBOLS MEANING AND THEIR MEANING

We see a variety of objects in the world around us. we are unable to see anything in a dark room.
1. u = OBJECT DISTANCE FROM PLOE
2. v = IMAGE DISTANCE FROM POLE
3. R = DISTANCE OF CENTRE OF CURVATURE FROM POLE
4. f = FOCAL LENGTH = DISTANCE OF PRINCIPAL FOCUS FROM POLE = R/2
5. h’ or hi = HEIGHT OF IMAGE
6. h or ho = HEIGHT OF OBJECT
7. m = MAGNIFICATION

10.3.5 PLANE MIRROR

• A plane mirror is a mirror with a flat (planar) reflective surface.
• Mathematically, a plane mirror can be considered to be the limit of either a concave or a convex
spherical curved mirror as the radius, and therefore the focal length becomes infinity.
• Its optical power is zero.
• A plane mirror is made using some highly reflecting and polished surface such as a silver or
aluminium surface in a process called silvering.
• After silvering, a thin layer of red lead oxide is applied at the back of the mirror.
• Mirrors made from liquid also exist, as the elements gallium and mercury are both highly
reflective in their liquid state.

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10.3.6 IMAGE FORMATION BY A PLANE MIRROR

(i) In plane mirrors, we use the laws of reflection while drawing the image of the objects.
(ii) As you see from the picture, we send rays from the top and bottom of the object to the mirror and
reflect them with the same angle it hits the mirror.
(iii) The extensions of the reflected rays give us the image of our object.
• Characteristics of Image
I. Virtual and erect.
II. Size of image is equal to the size of object.
III. Image is formed as far behind the mirror as the object is in front of it.
IV. Laterally inverted. (Lateral Inversion: The right side of the object appears left side of the
image and vice-versa).
• lateral magnification (m)
The ratio of image height to object height, in any image-forming situation is called the
lateral magnification (m) i.e m = height of image / height of object

Thus, for a plane mirror the lateral magnification m is unity or +1.

When you look at yourself in a plane mirror, your image is the same size as the real you.

10.3.7 IMAGES FORMED BY SPHERICAL MIRRORS

RULES FOR OBTAINING IMAGES FORMED BY SPHERICAL MIRRORS
1. A ray of light which run parallel to the principal axis, after reflection, passes through the
principal focus F of a concave mirror, or appears to pass through the principal focus of a
convex mirror.

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2. A ray of light passing through the principal focus of a concave mirror or appearing to pass
through the principal focus of a convex mirror becomes parallel to the principal axis after
reflection.

3. A ray of light passing through the centre of curvature in a concave mirror or a ray of light
going towards the centre of curvature of a convex mirror is reflected back along the same
path.

 The light rays come back along the same path because the incident rays fall on the
mirror along the normal to the reflecting surface.

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 4. A ray incident obliquely to the principal axis, towards a point P (pole of the mirror), on the
concave mirror or a convex mirror , is reflected obliquely.

 The incident and reflected rays follow the laws of reflection at the point of incidence
(point P), making equal angles with the principal axis.

• Image Characteristics FORMED BY SPHERICAL MIRRORS

I. An image may be real or virtual
II. An image may be upright or inverted
III. An image may be larger or smaller than the object

10.4 RAY DIAGRAMS

1. Concave (converging) Mirrors
For a concave mirror, there are six possible positions where the object can be positioned and an image is
formed:
i. Object is positioned at infinity

➢ When the object is placed at infinity, rays PR and QS parallel to the Principle axis are reflected
from points R and S respectively.
➢ Rays PR and QS intersect each other and get converged at the principal focus (f).
➢ When the object is placed at infinity, the properties of the images formed are highly
diminished, point sized and real and inverted.
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 Images will form along the focal plane from incoming rays not parallel to the principal plane.

ii. Object is positioned between INFINITY and CENTER OF CURVATURE(c)

➢ Here the object MN is placed between infinity and center of curvature (c) of a concave mirror,
➢ A ray MP parallel to the principal axis and another ray MQ that pass through the center of
curvature(C).
➢ The ray MP after reflection from the mirror intersect MQ at M’, between focus (f) and center
of curvature (c).
➢ The image is formed between principal focus (f) and center of curvature (c),
➢ The image formed is diminished and real and inverted.

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iii. Object is positioned at Center of Curvature (c)

➢ The object MN is placed the at the center of curvature (c).

➢ A ray MP parallel to the principal axis , after reflection pass through principal focus.
➢ A ray MQ that passes through the principal focus (f) , after reflection becomes parallel to
principal axis.
➢ Both MQ and MP after reflection intersect each other at point M’ right below where the object
MN is positioned.
➢ Image is formed at the center of curvature, the image is the same size as the object and images
are real and inverted.

iv. Object is positioned between the center of curvature (c) and principal focus (f)

➢ Object MN is placed between the center of curvature (c) and principal focus (f).
➢ A ray MP parallel to the principal axis, after reflection pass through principal focus.
➢ A ray MQ passing through principal focus (f), after reflection becomes parallel to principal
axis.
➢ Both MQ and MP after reflection intersect each other at point M’, beyond the center of
curvature (c) .
➢ The image is formed beyond the center of curvature (c), and the image is magnified, real and
inverted.

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v. Object is positioned at principal focus (f)

➢ Object MN is positioned at the principal focus (f).

➢ A ray MP parallel to the principal axis passes through principal focus (f) giving the reflected
ray PS.
➢ Second ray MQ that passes through the center of curvature is reflected along the same path
giving the reflected ray QR.
➢ Here, since the rays, PS and QR become nearly parallel to each other and therefore the image
formation is at infinity.
➢ The properties of the images formed are highly enlarged images and real and inverted images.

vi. Object is positioned between principal focus (f) and pole (p)

➢ Object MN is positioned between principal focus (f) and pole (p).

➢ The ray MP parallel to principal axis passes through principal focus (f) giving the reflected ray
PR.
➢ The second ray MQ that passes through the center of curvature is reflected along the same path
giving the reflected ray QS.
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 ➢ The reflected rays PR and QS are diverging away hence cannot intersect each other.
➢ The reflected rays PR and QS are extended behind the mirror by dotted lines. In doing so, rays
PR and QS appear to intersect each other at point M’ backwards.
➢ The image formed here are formed behind the mirror, images is highly enlarged, image is
virtual and erect.

2. Convex (diverging) Mirrors

In case, of a convex mirror, there are only two possible positions where the object can be positioned and
an image can be formed.

I. Object is positioned at Infinity

➢ When the object is at infinity, the rays MN and PX that are parallel to the principal axis (f) are
divergent in the direction NZ and XY respectively.
➢ After getting reflected from the convex mirror. The diverged rays NZ and XY are extended
behind the mirror.
➢ NZ and XY intersect each other at the principal focus (f).
➢ The images formed will be at the principal focus (f) behind the mirror and will be highly
diminished, the images will be virtual and erect.

II. Object is positioned between the pole (p) and the principal focus (f)

➢ When the object MN is placed between pole (p) and infinity.

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 ➢ A ray MC , parallel to the principal axis is reflected along CY.
➢ On extending behind the mirror, CY appears to come from principal focus (f).
➢ Another ray from point M of the object goes towards the center of curvature is reflected along
same path.
➢ The two rays, when extended behind the mirror, they appear to intersect each other at point N’.
➢ The images formed here are formed behind the mirror, between the pole and principal focus
(f), the images are diminished and are virtual and erect.

10.5 USES OF CONCAVE MIRRORS

i. Concave mirrors are commonly used in torches, search-lights and vehicles headlights to get
powerful parallel beams of light.
ii. They are often used as shaving mirrors to see a larger image of the face.
iii. The dentists use concave mirrors to see large images of the teeth of patients.
iv. Large concave mirrors are used to concentrate sunlight to produce heat in solar furnaces.

10.6 USES OF CONVEX MIRRORS

I. Convex mirrors are commonly used as rear-view (wing) mirrors in vehicles. These mirrors are
fitted on the sides of the vehicle, enabling the driver to see traffic behind him/her to facilitate safe
driving. Convex mirrors are preferred because
a) They always give an erect, though diminished, image.
b) They have a wider field of view as they are curved outwards.
Thus, convex mirrors enable the driver to view much larger area than would be possible with a
plane mirror.

10.7 SIGN CONVENTION FOR REFLECTION BY SPHERICAL MIRRORS

The principal axis of the mirror is taken as the x-axis (X’X) of the coordinate system.

The conventions are as follows –

(i) The object is always placed to the left of the mirror. This implies that the light from the object falls on
the mirror from the left-hand side.
(ii) All distances parallel to the principal axis are measured from the pole of the mirror.
(iii) All the distances measured to the right of the origin (along + x-axis) are taken as positive while those
measured to the left of the origin (along – x-axis) are taken as negative.
(iv) Distances measured perpendicular to and above the principal axis (along + y-axis) are taken as
positive.
(v) Distances measured perpendicular to and below the principal axis (along –y-axis) are taken as

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 negative.

These sign conventions are applied to obtain the mirror formula and solve related numerical problems.

10.8 MIRROR FORMULA

In a spherical mirror,
⚫ The distance of the object from its pole is called the object distance (u).
⚫ The distance of the image from the pole of the mirror is called the image distance (v).
⚫ The distance of the principal focus from the pole is called the focal length (f).

There is a relationship between these three quantities given by the mirror formula which is expressed as

10.9 MAGNIFICATION
1. Magnification produced by a spherical mirror gives the relative extent to which the image of an
object is magnified with respect to the object size.
2. It is expressed as the ratio of the height of the image to the height of the object.
3. It is usually represented by the letter m.

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 4. The magnification m is also related to the object distance (u) and image distance (v). It can be
expressed as:

Magnification (m) Size/Nature of image

>1 Magnified If m = - 3
i.e image is real , inverted an
<1 Diminished d magnified.
1 Same size
If m = +0.25
+ ve value Virtual & erect i.e image is virtual , ere
ct and diminished
- Ve Value Real & inverted

5. A negative sign in the value of the magnification indicates that the image is real.
( m = -ve , then , IMAGE IS REAL)

6. A positive sign in the value of the magnification indicates that the image is virtual.
( m = +ve , then , IMAGE IS VIRTUAL)

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 10.10 REFRACTION OF LIGHT
What happens when light enters from one transparent medium to another? Does it still move along a
straight-line path or change its direction?
You might have observed that the bottom of a tank or a pond containing water appears to be raised
when a thick glass slab is placed over some printed matter, the letters appear raised when viewed through
the glass slab.
These observations indicate that light does not travel in the same direction in all media.
It appears that when travelling obliquely from one medium to another, the direction of propagation of
light in the second medium changes.

This phenomenon is known as refraction of light.

Refraction is the change in direction of light when it passes from one medium to another.

IMP. TERMS RELATED WITH REFRACTION OF LIGHT

a) Angle of Incidence
Angle of incidence may be defined as the angle between the incident ray and normal at the point of
incidence.

b) Angle of Refraction
The angle of refraction is the angle between the refracted ray and normal at the point of incidence

c) Medium
A medium is any transparent substance through which light can pass

d) Optically Rarer Medium

An optically rarer medium is that medium in which the speed of light is more.

e) Optically Denser Medium

An optically denser medium is that medium in which the speed of light is less.

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10.11 REFRACTION THROUGH A RECTANGULAR GLASS SLAB
Activity
1. Fix a sheet of white paper on a drawing board using drawing pins.
2. Place a rectangular glass slab over the sheet in the middle.
3. Draw the outline of the slab with a pencil. Let us name the outline as ABCD.
4. Take four identical pins.
5. Fix two pins, say E and F, vertically such that the line joining the pins is inclined to the
edge AB.
6. Look for the images of the pins E and F through the opposite edge.
7. Fix two other pins, say G and H, such that these pins and the images of E and F lie on a
straight line.
8. Remove the pins and the slab.
9. Join the positions of tip of the pins E and F and produce the line up to AB. Let EF meet
AB at O. Similarly, join the positions of tip of the pins G and H and produce it up to the
edge CD. Let HG meet CD at O′.
10. Join O and O′. Also produce EF up to P, as shown by a dotted line

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Observation
1. In this Activity, you will note, the light ray has changed its direction at points O and O′.
2. Draw a perpendicular NN’ to AB at O and another perpendicular MM′ to CD at O′.
3. The light ray at point O has entered from a rarer medium to a denser medium, that is, from air to
glass.
4. Note that the light ray has bent towards the normal.
5. At O′, the light ray has entered from glass to air, that is, from a denser medium to a rarer medium.
6. The light here has bent away from the normal.
7. A ray EO is obliquely incident on surface AB, called incident ray.
8. OO′ is the refracted ray and O′ H is the emergent ray.
9. You may observe that the emergent ray is parallel to the direction of the incident ray.(Because
The extent of bending of the ray of light at the opposite parallel faces AB (air-glass interface) and
CD (glass-air interface) of the rectangular glass slab is equal and opposite).

Conclusion
1. Experiments show that refraction of light occurs according to certain laws.
2. Lateral shift/Displacement: Perpendicular distance between incident ray and emergent ray.
It depends upon :
i) Thickness of glass slab
ii) Incident angle
iii) Refractive index of glass
iv) Wavelength of incident light.

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10.12 LAWS OF REFRACTION OF LIGHT
Laws of Refraction of light are:
1. The incident ray, the refracted ray and the normal to the interface of two
transparent media at the point of incidence, all lie in the same plane.
2. The ratio of sine of angle of incidence to the sine of angle of refraction is a constant,
for the light of a given colour and for the given pair of media.
If i is the angle of incidence and r is the angle of refraction, then,

This constant value is also called the refractive index of the second medium with respect to the first.

10.13 RULES OF REFRACTION OF LIGHT

1. When a ray of light goes from an optically rarer medium to an optically denser medium, it bends
towards the normal.
In this case the angle of refraction will be smaller than the angle of incidence.
For example, when a beam of light goes from air into water, it bends towards the normal.
In the similar manner when a beam of light goes from air into glass or from water into glass, it bends
towards the normal.
In this case ;

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 2. When a ray of light goes from an optically denser medium to an optically rarer medium, it bends
away from the normal.
In this case the angle of refraction will be greater than the angle of incidence.

For example, when a beam of light goes from water into air, it bends away from the normal..
In the same way when a beam of light goes from glass into air or from glass into water, it bends away from the
normal.

3. If light ray enters another medium perpendicular to boundary, the ray does not bend.

In this case the angle of refraction will be equal to the angle of incidence i.e zero

10.14 THE REFRACTIVE INDEX

1. The index of refraction for a substance is the ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum/air to the
speed of light in that substance/medium.

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 2. This is called the absolute refractive index of the medium.
3. The index of refraction is a dimensionless number that is always greater than 1 because light
always travels slower in a substance than in a vacuum.
4. It is a number indicating the power to deviate the light from it’s path.
5. Let v1 be the speed of light in medium 1 and v2 be the speed of light in medium 2.
The refractive index of medium 2 with respect to medium 1 is given by the ratio of the speed of
light in medium 1 and the speed of light in medium 2.

This is usually represented by the symbol n21.

By the same argument, the refractive index of medium 1 with respect to medium 2 is represented as n12.
It is given by:

If medium 1 is vaccum or air , then the refractive index is called the absolute refractive index of
medium.

10.15 SPHERICAL LENSES

 A transparent material bound by two surfaces, of which one or both surfaces are spherical, forms a lens.
 This means that a lens is bound by at least one spherical surface. In such lenses, the other surface would
be plane.
 It is an optical device through which the rays of light converge or diverge before transmitting.

Types of Lenses
Spherical lenses are of two major kinds called “Convex or Convergent” lenses and “Concave or
Divergent” lenses. :
a. Convex or Convergent Lenses
b. Concave or Divergent Lenses

A. Convex or Convergent Lenses

i) A lens may have two spherical surfaces, bulging outwards. Such a lens is called a double
convex lens.
ii) It is simply called a convex lens. convex lenses are called converging lenses.

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iii) It is thicker at the middle as compared to the edges.

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 B. Concave or Divergent Lenses
i) A concave lens is thicker at the edges and thinner in the middle.
ii) A concave lens is also known as a “biconcave lens” because of two spherical surfaces
bulging inwards.
iii) A double concave lens is simply called a concave lens

10.15.1 TERMS RELATED TO SPHERICAL LENSES

• Optical centre
Optical centre is the centre of a lens.
• Centre of curvature (C)
A lens, either a convex lens or a concave lens,
has two spherical surfaces. Each of these
surfaces forms a part of a sphere. The centres of
these spheres are called centres of curvature of
the lens
• Radius of Curvature (R = 2F)
The distance between the optical centre and the
centre of curvature.
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 • Principal axis
Principal axis is the line passing through the optical centre and perpendicular to the lens.
• Focal Plane
It is the plane passing through the focus and normal to the principal axis.
• Principal Focus (F)
The principal focus is the point to which the parallel rays converge after passing through the lens.

10.15.2 RULES FOR OBTAINING IMAGES FORMED BY SPHERICAL LENSES

(i) A ray of light from the object, parallel to the principal axis, after refraction from a lens, passes
through the principal focus on the other side of the lens.

(ii) A ray of light passing through a principal focus, after refraction from a lens, will emerge parallel
to the principal axis.

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 (III) A ray of light passing through the optical centre of a lens will emerge without any deviation.

10.15.3 SIGN CONVENTION FOR REFRACTION BY SPHERICAL LENSES

The principal axis of the lens is taken as the x-axis (X’X) of the coordinate system.
The conventions are as follows –
i) The object is always placed to the left of the lens. This implies that the light from the object
falls on the lens from the left-hand side.
ii) All distances parallel to the principal axis are measured from the optical center of the lens.
iii) All the distances measured to the right of the origin (along + x-axis) are taken as positive while
those measured to the left of the origin (along – x-axis) are taken as negative.
iv) Distances measured perpendicular to and above the principal axis (along + y-axis) are taken as
Positive.
v) Distances measured perpendicular to and below the principal axis (along –y-axis) are taken as
negative.
vi) A convex lens has a positive focal length and a concave lens has a negative focal length

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10.15.4 IMAGES FORMED BY SPHERICAL LENSES
1. convex lens
For a convex lens, there are six possible positions where the object can be positioned and an image is
formed:
i) Object is positioned at infinity

➢ When the object is placed at infinity, light rays MX and NY which run parallel to the principal
axis are refracted at point X and Y respectively.
➢ At the principal focus, they intersect each other.
➢ The image is formed at the focus, the image is highly diminished ( [Link]-sized ), real and
inverted.

ii) The object is positioned beyond 2F

➢ An object MN is placed beyond the centre of curvature (2F).

➢ A light ray MX running parallel to the principal axis, passes through the focus (F) after
refraction.
➢ Another ray MO passes through the optical center (O) and without any deviation goes straight.
➢ At point M’, between the focus (F) and 2F of the lens on the other side, the two refracted rays
of light intersect each other.
➢ Therefore, the image M’N’ is formed and is diminished, real and inverted .

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iii) The object is positioned at 2F

➢ Object MN is placed at 2F of a convex lens and the ray of light MY parallel to the principal
axis passes through the focus (F) in the direction YF after refraction.
➢ Another ray MO which passes through the optical center O travels straight without any
deviation.
➢ At 2F, on the other side of the lens, the two refracted rays of light intersect each other at point
M’.
➢ Hence, the image M’N’ formed is at 2F, the image is of the same size as the object, and is real
and inverted.

iv) The object is positioned between the focus and the center of curvature

➢ Object MN is positioned between the focus (F) and the center of curvature (2F) of a convex
lens.
➢ Then the light ray MX running parallel to the principal axis after refraction passes through
focus (F) in the direction XF.
➢ Another ray MO passing through the optical center (O) travels straight without any deviation.
➢ Beyond the center of curvature (2F) on the other side of the lens, the two refracted rays
intersect each other at point M’.
➢ Therefore, the image M’N’ formed is larger than the object and is real and inverted.

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v) The object is positioned at focus F

➢ An object MN is placed at the principal focus (F), then a ray of light MY running parallel to the
principal axis passes through the focus(F) on the other side of the lens after refraction, in the
direction YQ.
➢ Another ray MO travels straight without any deviation in the direction OP while passing
through the optical center(O).
➢ The refracted rays: YQ and OP are parallel to each other, and hence cannot intersect each other,
as shown in the diagram given above.
➢ The image formed will be at infinity.
➢ So, the image M’N’ which that will be formed will be highly enlarged, real and inverted.

vi) The object is positioned between the focus (F ) and the optical center (O)

➢ Object MN is positioned between the principal focus (F) and the optical center (O).
➢ A ray of light MX parallel to the principal axis after refraction passes through the focus (F) on
the other side of the lens in the direction XD.
➢ Another ray MO travels straight without any deviation in the direction OE while passing
through the optical center (O).
➢ The two refracted light rays XD and OE diverge away from one another, and hence cannot
intersect each other; due to this, a real image cannot be formed.
➢ The refracted rays XD and OE are, therefore, extended backwards by dotted lines. In doing so,
they appear to intersect at point M’.

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 ➢ So, the image M’N’ formed here is a virtual, erect and highly enlarged that is formed on the
same side of the convex lens behind the object.

2. concave lens
For a concave lens, there are two possible positions where the object can be positioned and an image is
formed:
i) The object is positioned at infinity

➢ When an object is placed at infinity, the rays PM and QN parallel to the principal axis are
refracted at points M and N respectively and diverge in the directions MR and NS respectively.
➢ The diverged rays MR and NS after being extended backwards by dotted lines appear to
intersect each other at the principal focus(F) of the lens.
➢ Hence, when the object is placed at infinity in case of concave lens the image formed is at the
principal focus (F), the image is highly diminished (point-sized), virtual and erect.

ii) The object is positioned between infinity and the optical center (O)

➢ Object MN is positioned between infinity and the optical center (O) of the lens, a ray MD
parallel to the principal axis after refraction gets diverged in the direction DP and appears to
come from the principal focus (F) in the direction DF.
➢ Another ray MO travels straight without any deviation through the optical center (O) of the lens
in the direction OQ.
➢ Both the refracted rays DP and OQ are diverging in nature and hence they appear to intersect
each other at point M’ on the same side of the lens.

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 ➢ Therefore, the image M’N’ formed is virtual, diminished and erect image and is formed
between the optical centre (O) and the focus on the same side of the lens.

10.16 LENS FORMULA

In a spherical lenes,
◼ the distance of the object from its optical centre is called the object distance (u).
◼ The distance of the image from the optical centre is called the image distance (v).
◼ The distance of the principal focus from the optical centre is called the focal length (f).

There is a relationship between these three quantities given by the lens formula which is expressed as

10.17 MAGNIFICATION
Magnification produced by a spherical lens gives the relative extent to which the image of an object is
magnified with respect to the object size.
It is expressed as the ratio of the height of the image to the height of the object. It is usually represented
by the letter m.
The magnification m is also related to the object distance (u) and image distance (v). It can be expressed as:
Magnification (m) Size/Nature of image
If m = - 3
>1 Magnified i.e image is real , inverted and mag
<1 Diminished nified.
1 Same size
If m = +0.25
+ ve value Virtual & erect i.e image is virtual , erect and
diminished
- Ve Value Real & inverted

10.18 POWER OF A LENS

⚫ The power of a lens is defined as the ability of the lens to converge or diverge a beam of light
falling on it.

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⚫ A lens is said to be of greater power if it diverges or converges a beam of light more strongly by
focusing them closer to the optical centre
⚫ In other words, a lens of small focal length is said to have greater power.

p = 1 / f ( m)
or
p = 100 / f (cm)
⚫ The SI unit of power of a lens is ‘dioptre’. It is denoted by the letter D.
⚫ If f is expressed in metres, then, power is expressed in dioptres.
⚫ Thus, 1 dioptre is the power of a lens whose focal length is 1 metre. 1D = 1m–1.
⚫ The net power (P) of the lenses placed in contact is given by the algebraic sum of the individual
powers P1, P2, P3, … as P = P1 + P2 + P3 +…

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