For an optical cavity consisting of two mirrors, confocal means that they share their foci. If they are identical mirrors, their
radius of curvature, Rmirror, equals L, where L is the distance between the mirrors.
In
conic sections, it is said of two
ellipses, two
hyperbolas, or an ellipse and a hyperbola which share both foci with each other. If an ellipse and a hyperbola are confocal, they are
perpendicular to each other.
In
optics, it means that one
focus or image point of one lens is the same as one focus of the next
lens.
This
article includes a list of related items that share the same name (or similar names). If an
internal link incorrectly led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.
For an optical cavity consisting of two mirrors, confocal means that they share their foci. If they are identical mirrors, their
radius of curvature, Rmirror, equals L, where L is the distance between the mirrors.
In
conic sections, it is said of two
ellipses, two
hyperbolas, or an ellipse and a hyperbola which share both foci with each other. If an ellipse and a hyperbola are confocal, they are
perpendicular to each other.
In
optics, it means that one
focus or image point of one lens is the same as one focus of the next
lens.
This
article includes a list of related items that share the same name (or similar names). If an
internal link incorrectly led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.