Glass Fresnel Lenses Fused Silica

Fresnel lens is a compact lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for the lighthouse.Fresnel lens is composed of a series of concentric rings. Compared with traditional lens, Fresnel lens reduces the amount of material required by dividing the lens into a group of concentric annular parts.It is used for light collection, light collimation, amplification etc.

Applications of fresnel lens

• Light Collimation

A Fresnel lens can easily collimate a point source by placing it one focal length away from the source. In a finite-conjugate system, the grooved side of the Fresnel lens should face the longer conjugate because this produces the best performance.

• Light Collection

One of the most common applications for a Fresnel lens is the collection of solar light, which is considered very nearly parallel (an infinite-conjugate system). Using a Fresnel lens for light collection is ideal for concentrating light onto a photovoltaic cell or to heat a surface. For example, a Fresnel lens can be used for popular home maintenance such as heating a home or pool! In these cases, the overall surface area of the lens determines the amount of collected light.

• Magnification

Another common application for a Fresnel lens is magnification. It can be used as a magnifier or projection lens; however, due to the high level of distortion, this is not recommended. Also, the image quality does not compare to that of a higher-precision system given the amount of distortion.

 While commonly found in solar applications, Fresnel lenses are ideal for any application requiring inexpensive, thin, lightweight positive lens elements. Fresnel lenses are not new technology, but their pervasiveness has increased with improvements in manufacturing techniques and materials. Fresnel lenses are truly unique optical lenses which make them a great tool for a range of interesting and fun optical designs.