Optics Lab
Optics Lab:
Mirrors and Lenses
Theodore Gotis
Oakton Community College
(revised 7/21/11 J)
I. Introduction and Objectives
II. Equipment Needed
Ray Box Concave Lens Compass
Plane Mirror Convex Lens Protractor
Concave Mirror Prism Ruler
Convex Mirror Water Tray
III. Theory
Ray diagrams
Focal length
Radius of curvature
Law of reflection
Snell’s Law (Refraction)
Total Internal Reflection
IV. Experimental Procedure
A. Plane Mirrors
1. Use a ruler to draw a straight line on one side of a sheet of paper near the center, then draw a perpendicular line through the center of the first line.
2. Line up the front edge of the plane mirror with the straight line so that the perpendicular is at the center of the mirror.
Figure 1: Plane Mirror
Ray Box
Incident Ray Plane Mirror
Concave Mirror ( Perpendicular to the Plane Mirror
Reflected Ray
3. Using the concave mirror from your mirror and lens kit, cover up all but one of the rays coming from the ray box.
4. Now aim this single beam of light at an angle ( between 30(and 60( from the perpendicular to the plane mirror, and trace the incident and reflected beams of light with a pencil.
5. Using a protractor, measure the angle ( between the incident ray and the perpendicular to the plane mirror. Do the same for the reflected ray.
6. Now repeat Steps #4-6 for two more incident beams of light between 10( and 80(
Data Table 1: Plane Mirror
|Angle of Incident Ray |Angle of Reflected Ray |
| | |
| |
Mirrors and Lenses
Theodore Gotis
Oakton Community College
(revised 7/21/11 J)
I. Introduction and Objectives
II. Equipment Needed
Ray Box Concave Lens Compass
Plane Mirror Convex Lens Protractor
Concave Mirror Prism Ruler
Convex Mirror Water Tray
III. Theory
Ray diagrams
Focal length
Radius of curvature
Law of reflection
Snell’s Law (Refraction)
Total Internal Reflection
IV. Experimental Procedure
A. Plane Mirrors
1. Use a ruler to draw a straight line on one side of a sheet of paper near the center, then draw a perpendicular line through the center of the first line.
2. Line up the front edge of the plane mirror with the straight line so that the perpendicular is at the center of the mirror.
Figure 1: Plane Mirror
Ray Box
Incident Ray Plane Mirror
Concave Mirror ( Perpendicular to the Plane Mirror
Reflected Ray
3. Using the concave mirror from your mirror and lens kit, cover up all but one of the rays coming from the ray box.
4. Now aim this single beam of light at an angle ( between 30(and 60( from the perpendicular to the plane mirror, and trace the incident and reflected beams of light with a pencil.
5. Using a protractor, measure the angle ( between the incident ray and the perpendicular to the plane mirror. Do the same for the reflected ray.
6. Now repeat Steps #4-6 for two more incident beams of light between 10( and 80(
Data Table 1: Plane Mirror
|Angle of Incident Ray |Angle of Reflected Ray |
| | |
| |