magnification (redirected from magnify)

magnification

a measure of the ability of a lens or other optical instrument to magnify, expressed as the ratio of the size of the image to that of the object

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magnification [‚mag·nə·fə′kā·shən]

(optics)

A measure of the effectiveness of an optical system in enlarging or reducing an image; the magnification may be lateral, longitudinal, or angular.

lateral magnification

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Magnification

A measure of the effectiveness of an optical system in enlarging or reducing an image. For an optical system that forms a real image, such a measure is the lateral magnification m, which is the ratio of the size of the image to the size of the object. If the magnification is greater than unity, it is an enlargement; if less than unity, it is a reduction.

The angular magnification is the ratio of the angles formed by the image and the object at the eye. In telescopes the angular magnification (or, better, the ratio of the tangents of the angles under which the object is seen with and without the lens, respectively) can be taken as a measure of the effectiveness of the instrument.

Magnifying power is the measure of the effectiveness of an optical system used in connection with the eye. The magnifying power of a spectacle lens is the ratio of the tangents of the angles under which the object is seen with and without the lens, respectively. The magnifying power of a magnifier or an ocular is the ratio of the size under which an object would appear when seen through the instrument at a distance of 10 in. or 250 mm (the distance of distinct vision) divided by the object size. See Lens (optics), Optical image