Concave Mirror Image
In the chapter, Concave Mirror Image, we shall be discussing image formation in concave mirrors. In this topic, we will be covering the concepts about what is a concave mirror, the conditions for a mirror to be concave, and other related things. We at Vedantu believe that learning comes from understanding and thus, we aim to provide the students with content that is comprehendible, simple in language, and that helps the students to dive into it. Therefore, our website provides the students with several important resources including sample papers, previous year’s question papers, revision notes, worksheets, solutions for the various papers, and provide the study material for various competitive exams like NDA, NEET, JEE Mains, and Advance, NTSE, and others.
What is a Concave Mirror?
A concave mirror is the part of a spherical mirror of which the internal curved surface is the reflecting surface. In a concave mirror, the reflecting surface seems to be away from the source of light.
Due to the curved shape, the incident light is converged (i.e., reflected inwards). Due to this, a concave mirror is also called a converging mirror. Concave mirrors are used for focusing light.
Reflection from a concave mirror follows the laws of reflection. The normal to the point of incidence is drawn along the radius of the mirror, i.e., it is drawn by joining the centre of curvature with the point of incidence.
The normal to the reflecting surface of the mirror is different for each point of the mirror and this causes the convergence of rays after reflection.
How is the Image Formed in a Concave Mirror?
The formation of an image that occurs in a concave mirror mainly depends on the distance between the object and the mirror. Both real and virtual images are formed by the concave mirror.
When the object is placed very close to the mirror, a virtual and magnified image is formed.
When the distance between the objects in the mirror is increased, the size of the image gets diminished and a real image is formed.
The real image of a concave mirror can be projected on the screen. The focal point and the centre of curvature of a concave mirror lie in front of the mirror.
Important Terms
Pole: The centre of the reflecting surface of the concave mirror is called its pole. The pole lies on the surface of the concave mirror and is denoted by P.
Centre of Curvature: Centre of curvature of the mirror is measured through the centre of the sphere in which the concave reflecting surface is a part.
It lies external to the reflecting surface of the mirror and is denoted by C. For a concave mirror, the centre of curvature lies in front of the mirror.
The Radius of Curvature: It is the radius of the sphere which forms the reflective part. It is denoted by R.
Principal Axis: The principal axis is a straight line that passes through the pole and the centre of curvature of the mirror. It is always perpendicular to the pole.
Principal Focus: After reflection, the reflected rays which are parallel to the principal axis converge at a common point on the principal axis. This point is called the principal focus. It is denoted by F.
Focal Length: The distance between the pole and the principal focus is called the focal length. It is denoted by f.
Image Formation by a Concave Mirror
When the object is placed at infinity.
When the object is placed beyond the centre of curvature of the mirror.
When the object is placed exactly at the centre of curvature C.
When the object is placed between the focus and centre of curvature.
When the object is placed exactly at F.
When the object is placed between F and the pole of the mirror, P.
I. When the Object is at Infinity
Two rays originating from the object and parallel to the principal axis reflect from the mirror. After reflection, the rays converge to form an image at point F. The image formed will be highly diminished, real, point size, and inverted.
II. The Object is Placed Beyond C
Two rays emerge from the object, one of which is parallel to the principal axis, and the other moves towards the centre of curvature of the mirror.
After reflection, the image is formed between the centre of curvature C and the focus F. The image formed is diminished, inverted, and real.
III. The Object is Placed at C
Two rays emerge from the object. One of the rays travels parallel to the principal axis and the other passes through the focus.
After reflection, the image is formed at C. The image formed is of the same size as that of the object; it is real and inverted.
IV. Concave Mirror Object Between C and F
Two rays emerge from the object. One of the rays is parallel to the principal axis and the other ray passes through the focus of the mirror.
This is the image created beyond the centre of curvature C of the mirror. The size of the image is magnified; it is real and inverted.
Concave Mirror Image Formation Table
Uses of Concave Mirrors
The Concave mirrors are used in many places, some of which are highlighted below:
The concave mirrors are widely used in torches, searchlights, and vehicle headlights to get powerful parallel beams of light and facilitate the activity.
They are commonly used in shaving mirrors as they get a magnified image of the individual’s face.
Concave mirrors are used by dentists to see large images of the teeth of patients.
They are also useful in reflecting telescopes.
The concave mirrors are majorly used to form optical cavities, which are important in the construction of lasers.
Large concave mirrors are used for concentrating sunlight to produce heat in solar furnaces.
The concave mirrors are often used as the mirror landing aid system for modern aircraft carriers.
FAQs on Concave Mirror Image Formation
1. What Kind of Image is Formed By a Concave Mirror?
The concave mirrors can form two types of images which include- Real and virtual The Real and virtual images are formed by concave mirrors. The images formed can be upright (if virtual) or inverted (if real). Also, the position of the image can be behind the mirror (if virtual) or in front of the mirror (if real). The size of the image can be enlarged, diminished, or of the same size as the object. The students can visit the Vedantu website for more information about the Concave mirrors and also access other study material free of cost.
2. Is a Concave Mirror Image Real?
In a concave mirror A real image is formed when the rays are converged. When the rays diverge from a point, a virtual image is formed. When the object is positioned at a distance from the mirror, real images can be formed by a concave mirror. However, the distance of the object should be less than the focal point. The image is real and inverted. Also, the concave mirror helps the image formation in a different way which is discussed in the content available on Vedantu’s website.
3. How Does Light Reflect Off a Concave Mirror?
A concave mirror, or also known as the converging mirror, has a reflecting surface that is recessed inward (that is away from the incident light). The Concave mirrors reflect light inwards to one focal point and then they are used to focus light. When the incident light hits a concave mirror, the light rays get reflected inwards towards the focal point F. The light rays, which get reflected by the same angle, hit the small part of the surface. These light rays get reflected inwards and meet at the focal point.
4. What are the Rules of the Concave Mirror?
An image is formed when an object is placed in front of a concave mirror. The point of intersection of any two of the rays shows that the image point I of an object is O. The rays reflected from a concave mirror follow certain rules which are as follows:
1. A ray that comes parallel to the principal axis is reflected through the principal focus of the concave mirror.
2. The ray of light that passes the principal focus becomes parallel to the principal axis after being reflected from the concave mirror.
3. A ray of light that is coming through the centre of curvature is reflected along the same path.
4. A ray of light that is incident on the pole, at an angle O with the principal axis, is reflected by the same angle O.
5. What are the different types of images formed by a concave mirror?
A concave mirror can form various types of images but it depends on the position of the object to the mirror. As if the distance of an object, say OO' from a concave mirror is changed, then the nature, size, and location of the image are also changed.
The formation of different images depending on the position of the object is as shown below:
1. First Position:
(Beyond 'C'). It is when the object is placed beyond the centre of curvature C, then the image is formed between the focus and the centre of the curvature; and between 'F' and 'C'. The image formed here will be real, inverted, and smaller in size.
2. Second Position:
(at 'C'). Here, when the object is placed at the centre of the curvature the image is formed at the centre of the curvature C and is real, inverted, and equal.
3. Third Position:
(Between 'C' and 'F'). This happens when the object is placed between the centre of the curvature C and the focus F, it is then the image is formed beyond C. Here, the image will be real, inverted, and larger than the object.
4. Fourth Position:
(at 'F'). it is when the object is placed at the principal focus, then the image will be real, inverted, larger, and at infinity.
5. Fifth Position:
(between 'F' and 'P'). It’s when the object is placed between the pole and the principal focus, then the virtual, erect, and larger image will be formed
