Achromatic Verses Apochromatic



It was back in 1733, that an Englishman by the name of Chester Moore Hall first developed the Achromatic refracting lens. His new design restricted the color aberrations by utilizing 2 pieces of glass that were ground and polished.

Achromatic Lens

Achromatic lenses are produced from a convex and concave lens. Concave lenses are frequently manufactured from Flint glass, while the convex is from Crown glass.

The lens is designed to limit the effects of chromatic and spherical aberration. Achromatic lenses are corrected to bring 2 wavelengths, typically red and blue, into focus in the same plane.

In recent years many different kinds of achromat have been developed. They vary in the shape of lenses as well as the optical properties of their glass

Apochromatic Lens

Apochromatic refracting lenses are designed to view red, green, and blue light wavelengths. The earliest ones were developed by the German physicist, Abbe.

Various kinds of fluorite or extra low dispersion glass may also be used, which results in a crisp clear image without the rainbow of color around it. These particular kinds of refracting lenses are more pricey than the achromatic lenses.

Apochromatic lenses call for lenses that are able to deal with 3 color crossings. They are generally crafted from costly fluoro-crown glass, abnormal flint glass, or transparent liquids that are used in the space between the glass.

These more modern designs allow for the objects to be free of color around the edges, whilst producing fewer aberrations than achromatic lenses.

It is widely accepted that the apochromat lens has superior correction of chromatic and spherical aberration than the more widespread achromat lens.

The cost of these kinds of refracting lenses can be expensive primarily based on the size of aperture you require.

And whilst the price of 2 inch to 3 inch apertures for Achromatic refractors can cost anything between $250 to $1000, 3 to 5 inch apertures can set you back anything between $2000 to $10,000.






Return From Achromatic Verses Apochromatic To Astronomy Articles Main Page

Telescopes Home Page