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focal length
(redirected from Focus length)

   Also found in: Medical, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.04 sec.
focal length, distance
the distance from the focal point of a lens or mirror to the reflecting surface of the mirror or the centre point of the lens

Focal length

A measure of the collecting or diverging power of a lens or an optical system. Focal length, usually designated f in formulas, is measured by the distance of the focal point (the point where the image of a parallel entering bundle of light rays is formed) from the lens, or more exactly by the distance from the principal point to the focal point. See Geometrical optics

The power of a lens system is equal to n/f, where n is the refractive index in the image space (n is usually equal to unity). A lens of zero power is said to be afocal. Telescopes are afocal lens systems. See Diopter, Lens (optics), Telescope



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