What You Should Know About Aspheric Lens Use For Precise Imaging

28 May 2015
 Categories: Industrial & Manufacturing, Articles


Whether you're working in an industrial environment or you need lenses for other imaging needs, you shouldn't overlook the advantages of aspheric lenses. They can provide several beneficial features for your imaging, but if you're not familiar with them, you'll never really know what they can do. Here's a look at some of the key advantages to using aspheric lenses as part of your operation.

Spherical Aberration Compensation

Aspheric lenses are a great tool when it comes to compensating for spherical aberration. Spherical aberration is the loss of definition in an image due to alteration of the ideal focal point, and it occurs frequently due to the curvature of traditional spherical lenses. In most cases, it is due to the reflection of light, which is a problem that occurs with most spherical shapes. Aspheric lenses allow you to compensate for this, providing a light ray reflection that's focused in a single spot. This enhances clarity and eliminates reflective blur.

F-Stop Adjustment Reductions

When you have to adjust the f-stop setting to draw in light, you sacrifice image clarity due to noise from the lighting. Since aspheric lenses give you the ability to capture the light and images through the lens without having to change your f-stop settings, using these in your setup gives you the freedom to maintain the same light input levels without sacrificing image clarity and quality. Opt for aspheric lenses in your design to reduce the need for f-stop adjustments to produce the images you want.

Increased Variety in Your Lenses

Aspheric lenses come in many styles and designs. When you opt to use these lenses in your system, you'll have to explore all of those options to see which ones are the best fit for you. For example:

  • Meniscus Lenses – Meniscus lenses are created with two surfaces that each have a unique radius. The basic function and focal length of the lens will vary based on the specific radius of both the outward and inward curves. The convex surfaces of a positive meniscus lens have a larger radius than the concave surfaces. They are thinner around the outer edges and get progressively thicker toward the center. With positive meniscus lenses, you can shorten the focal length of your lens with increased aperture without sacrificing the quality of the final image. Negative meniscus lenses feature a larger radius on the concave surface than the convex one. They are typically thicker around the edge of the lens than they are in the middle, and are best for expanding light beams without weakening the strength of the light. These are best in dim lighting.
  • Plano Lenses – Plano-convex lenses provide you with a cost-effective means to consolidate parallel rays of light into a single focal point. They are asymmetrical, which helps you to reduce aberration. This is especially helpful if you're working with subjects at differing distances. Plano-concave lenses can also help you control aberration, particularly when it's caused by a lens present in the optical system. Plano-concave lenses bend light output so that it diverges. When you point the curve toward the furthest focal distance, you'll get negative focal length with an integrated adjustment for spherical aberration.

Now that you understand the function of these lenses and what they can bring to your operation, you can decide which of these options is best for your needs. One of the best ways to narrow things down is to talk with an aspheric lens professional at a site like http://www.mathewsoptical.com who can assess your setup and tell you which ones will work best to give you the final product you're after. And, by working with an aspheric lens manufacturer, you can also get some direct input to help you properly care for the lenses over time.


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