Scientist solves centuries-old problem that will lead to cheaper, sharper lenses

[Shawn Knight]

What just happened? Optical imaging technology has come a long way over the years but problems still plague the industry. Now thanks to the discovery of a Mexican physicist, manufacturers and photographers alike have one less concern to worry with.

Camera lenses and other optical systems are made from spherical surfaces, largely because the shape is easier to form than non-spherical curved surfaces. The issue that arises with this is that light rays which hit the surface off-center are refracted or reflected more or less than those that hit at the dead center, resulting in an issue called spherical aberration – more or less, a lens that has a sharp focus in the center but is soft around the edges.

Lens makers have been attempting to remedy this effect for years by using aspherical lenses to counteract the phenomenon. It has worked to some degree but on a per-lens basis – each time a new lens is created, they have to start over from scratch.

Rafael Gonzalez from Mexico's Tecnologico de Monterrey somehow managed to craft an incredibly complex formula that can be used to completely remove all spherical aberration when manufacturing a lens. In testing on 500 different light rays, the formula was found to have an average accuracy of 99.9999999999 percent.

The discovery is expected to reduce the expensive trial and error associated with the lens-making business and could result in less complex lenses that are sharper with fewer elements. It could also have an impact on other areas of imaging as it could lead to sharper microscopes and better telescopes for deep-space gazing.

Details on the method were published in the journal Applied Optics.

Masthead credit: Camera lens by REDPIXEL.PL

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/81357-scientist-solves-centuries-old-problem-lead-cheaper-sharper.html

 

[B5S46M]

SLR lenses will not get any cheaper. The margins will only be that much higher. Why would anyone sell a better lens than the last one for less? Better lens = more $$$ to the consumer.

 

[SirDigby]

Well done mate!

 

[mbrowne5061]

SLR lenses will not get any cheaper. The margins will only be that much higher. Why would anyone sell a better lens than the last one for less? Better lens = more $$$ to the consumer.

If Nikon and Canon weren't at each other's throats, with Sigma and Zeiss throwing rocks from the sidelines, I would agree with you. But they're competing, so prices will fall if this formula pans out into real world results.

 

[Uncle Al]

While there are a number of software programs that "correct" for this problem, not having it in the first place will result in cleaner, sharper images. While several of the camera companies are fighting over so many things, they are also starting to hear the message that the buying public is tired of it and will vote with their dollars elsewhere. Sony has been making strides in this regards and while they certainly aren't cheap, they are starting to offer a lot more for your buying dollar. Don't think for a moment that Canon and Nikon haven't noticed that one!

 

[ShagnWagn]

"Now thanks to the discovery of a Mexican physicist, manufacturers and photographers alike have one less concern to worry with."

Thank goodness, we found one! I was concerned there weren't any Mexican physicists either...

 

[p51d007]

The "problem" with fast/prime lenses being very expensive, yes, does come from the costs & types of lenses, but also a HUGE cost is LABOR. These lenses have to be hand assembled and calibrated, which increases their cost, along with the manufacturers hike the price because they ARE a prime lens

 

[VitalyT]

I wasn't sure at first how it would work, but once I saw the formula...

 

[captaincranky]

"Now thanks to the discovery of a Mexican physicist, manufacturers and photographers alike have one less concern to worry with."

Thank goodness, we found one! I was concerned there weren't any Mexican physicists either...

His father, head of a Mexican drug cartel, sent him to "M.T. M.", which is apparently Mexico's M.I.T.. He sent his other son to music school, so that he would grow up being able to compose songs about his dad's exploits.

 

[retsxel]

This is almost the holy grail of the optical world. NASA is going to take a great interest in this.

 

[captaincranky]

That statement has as much merit as the author.

I was never intended to have merit. It was an attempt at humor.

Since we both know you don't have a sense of humor toward anything I might post, how about if you just ignore it?

Here expand your horizons. Try and wrap your head around this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcocorrido

BTW, how are our staff writers doing? Have they been meeting your exaggerated expectations?

Additionally: https://www.pri.org/stories/2013-12-11/drug-lords-pay-mexican-american-singer-write-their-ballads

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/mar/28/narcocorrido-sound-los-angeles

https://therooster.com/blog/mexico-drug-cartels-pay-bands-sing-their-deadly-praises

 

[Kashim]

Oh boy, new lens tech! It sounds awesome! They should combine this tech with all those revolutionary new battery tech we keep seeing every few months, they they'll have a real winner on their hands! [end sarcasm]

 

[captaincranky]

Oh boy, new lens tech! It sounds awesome!

I kow you were being sarcastic, but this isn't really new "lens tech" as such. It's just supposed to circumvent lens designers sitting around and scratching their heads for weeks or months, (or maybe years), to get the optical formula for any given set of given lens parameters you might want. Modern lenses are extremely complex, involving many elements structured in various groups, various coatings, and various shaped glass surfaces. So, this is simply a template for computer modeling, taking into account all of the variables.

Looking at that formula, it's pretty obvious, a computer could do the simulation exponentially faster than the "guys in the backroom".

If you're at all interested in cameras with interchangeable lenses, just read the ads for various different lenses. You'll see terms like "aspherical", flourite element", "extremely low dispersion glass", "extra super multi coating", and others. This program will (allegedly), tell lens designers what has to go where for best performance, before a lens is built

Basically computer modeling for high performance lenses.

 

[captaincranky]

@Shawn Knight

Spherical aberration is only one issue of lens performance. Generally soft corners are vastly improved by stopping a lens down from it's maximum aperture. There are other issues such as chromatic aberration and vignetting which compromise performance as well. So, the caballero has cured one disease, but not all of them.

I'd go on to say that in professional and hobby photography, you don't always want, nor is it desirable to have as much sharpness at the edge of the frame as in the center. In fact, using the selective focus, limited depth of field properties of long focal length lenses, is a time honored way of getting the background out of focus while the subject is still sharp.The way any given lens portrays the out of focus areas, is called by a subjectively judged quality known as "bokeh". <(I thought I'd get some feedback from spellcheck for that).

But for technical applications the necessity of corner to corner sharpness is granted, quite a different story. .

 

[jhill3d71]

"Now thanks to the discovery of a Mexican physicist, manufacturers and photographers alike have one less concern to worry with."

Thank goodness, we found one! I was concerned there weren't any Mexican physicists either...

You just won the internet today good sir!

 

[raydpratt007]

I followed the links to the .pdf and I saved it to my math folder along with copies of the pictures of differently shaped lens in the article. I lack both the math and physics education to understand the formula, but my math folder is where I save important educational materials that I hope to understand in the future.
The article piqued my interest because I sometimes try to imagine how vision-realistic 3D images could be produced, and thus the idea of correctly shaping how flat source pictures might be presented to each eye makes the article's method potentially applicable, both for the camera that takes the pictures and the device that views or presents them.
I am also interested in how one might see minerals or valuables or structures in the ground in 3D, and thus the formula could be useful in ways not yet considered for focusing other wavelengths and re-representing them to each eye in visible light.
In some ways, it is a blessing to be uneducated because all things are possible until you go to school and either learn or figure out that not all things are possible.

 

[Nero7]

Probably used in military satelites since... when did the movie Enemy of the State come out?

 

[Nero7]

Heh, and then when you take a picture of earth with it, the results might be more surprising than you'd imagine.

 

[King K]

"Now thanks to the discovery of a Mexican physicist, manufacturers and photographers alike have one less concern to worry with."

Thank goodness, we found one! I was concerned there weren't any Mexican physicists either...

The rapists and the drug dealer are in the U.S by now