Transcript Slide 1

3. Image motion due to optical element motion
• Tilt and decenter of optical components (lenses, mirrors, prisms) will
cause motion of the image
– Element drift causes pointing instability
•Affects boresight, alignment of co-pointed optical systems
•Degrades performance for spectrographs
– Element vibration causes image jitter
•Long exposures are blurred
•Limit performance of laser projectors
Small motions, entire field shifts (all image points move the same)
Image shift has same effect as change of line of sight direction
(defined as where the system is looking)
J. H. Burge, “An easy way to relate optical element motion to system pointing
stability,” in Current Developments in Lens Design and Optical Engineering
VII, Proc. SPIE 6288 (2006).
J. H. Burge
Lens decenter
• All image points move together
• Image motion is magnified
J. H. Burge
Effect for lens tilt
• Can use full principal plane relationships
• Lens tilt often causes more aberrations than image motion
J. H. Burge
What happens when an optical element
is moved?
To see image motion,
follow the central ray
Generally, it changes in position and angle

 : change in angle
ay
r
d
e
at
devi

y
Initial on-axis ray
s
J. H. Burge
Element motion
s : decenter
 : tilt
Central ray deviation
y : lateral shift
Lens motion
decenter
tilt

s
 

f

s
 s 
f
s

f
J. H. Burge
 
(Very small effect)
Mirror motion

s

s
f
like lens
s
   2
f
J. H. Burge
 = 2
like flat mirror
Motion for a plane parallel plate

y
Plane parallel plate
thickness t
index n
J. H. Burge
 t  n  1
y 
n
No change in angle
The Optical Invariant
The stop is not special. Any two independent rays can be used for this. The
optical invariant will be maintained through the system
J. H. Burge
J. H. Burge
General expression for image motion
Element i
NA and Fn based on
system focus
Light from
point on axis,
Bundle defined
by aperture
Off-axis light
is ignored
“Beam footprint”
on element i
Nominal marginal
rays at element i
ui = NAi
Image
shift

Perturbed central ray
from element i
yi
ui  i
Di
yi  yi
NAi
  Fn Di i 
yi
NA
J. H. Burge
1
2NA
Di beam footprint for on-axis bundle
Fn final working f-number =
i = change in central ray angle due
to motion of element i
Example for change in angle
  Fn Di i
Image motion from change in ray angle
For single lens, this is trivial
D

f = FnD
J. H. Burge

  f 
 Fn D
Effect of lens decenter
 i 
Decenter s causes angular change in central ray
Which causes image motion   Fn Di i  Fn Di
Magnification of Image / lens motion
s
fi
  Fn
s
fi
NA and Fn based on system focus

Di is “Beam footprint”
on element i
J. H. Burge
Di
s
fi
Di
Di
Example for mirror tilt
Tilt  causes angular change in central ray
  2Fn Di i
Which causes image motion
“Lever arm” of 2 Fn Di
i  2
( obvious for case where mirror is the last element)

Follow the central ray

d
  d 
 Fn Di 
 2 Fn Di
Small angle approx
Di is beam size
at mirror
This is valid for any mirror!

J. H. Burge
Stationary point for finite conjugates
• Rotate about C, define system using principal planes
c
C
P
y   c  PP '
P’

y
(d’)
CP
f
 (d ')  y  d ' 
   c
d’
CPstationary




J. H. Burge
f
   PP '
d'
For a thin lens, PP’ = 0, and the stationary point occurs at CP = 0, rotating about the principal points.
For an object at infinity, d’ = f , so CPstationary = -PP’, which means that the stationary point occurs at the rear
principal point. This principle is used for finding the principal point with a nodal slide 1.
The stationary point depends not only on the optical system, but also on the object and image positions.
A real biconvex “thick lens” operating at 1:1 conjugates has its stationary point in the middle. (CP = -0.5 PP’
and d’ = 2f .)
Afocal systems
• For system with object or image at infinity, effect of element motion is
tilt in the light.
• Simply use the relationship from the optical invariant:

Fn
 D0 0
Where
 is the change in angle of the light in collimated space
D0 is the diameter of the collimated beam
D00  Di i
J. H. Burge