Introduction

While we all feel familiar with the images we see in plane mirrors, our experiences with their curved counterparts might be limited to cosmetic mirrors or the side view mirrors on automobiles. In this experiment, you will explore the characteristics of the real and virtual images formed by curved mirrors. Then you will develop a mathematical relationship describing the relationship between the positions of the object and the real image formed by concave mirrors.

Objectives

In this experiment, you will

  • Use curved mirrors to produce real and virtual images.
  • Explore how the position of the object affects the appearance, orientation, and size of real images produced by concave mirrors.
  • Explore how mirror characteristics and the position of the object affect the appearance, orientation, and size of virtual images produced by concave and convex mirrors.
  • Determine the relationship between object distance, image distance, focal length, and magnification in real images produced by concave mirrors.