| Dr Richard Bingham (UCL) |
| 28th November 2001 |
| Optical Design and some UK Instruments for Astronomy |
| This seminar concerns the quality of the images delivered by lenses and mirrors, and how the need for sharp images determines the design of an optical instrument. To achieve a particular result, there is a continuum of feasible optical designs having the required focal length, etc.; however, aberrations need to be eliminated by considering symmetry and by using special cases within the general problem. Many of the relevant effects are exploited in the optical instruments currently used in UK astronomy, and examples of those instruments will illustrate the talk. |
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