optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of optical instruments, instruments that use or Photodetector, detect it. Optics usually describes t ...

, a conjugate plane or conjugate focal plane of a given plane ''P'', is the plane ''P′'' such that points on ''P'' are imaged on ''P′''. If an object is moved to the point occupied by its image, then the moved object's new image will appear at the point where the object originated. In other words, the object and its image are interchangeable. This comes from the principle of reversibility which states light rays will travel along the originating path if the light's direction is reversed. Depending on how an optical system is designed, there can be multiple planes that are conjugate to a specific plane (e.g. intermediate and final image planes for an object plane). The points that span conjugate planes are called conjugate points. For a

thin lens In optics, a thin lens is a lens (optics), lens with a thickness (distance along the optical axis between the two surfaces of the lens) that is negligible compared to the radius of curvature (optics), radii of curvature of the lens surfaces. Len ...

or a

curved mirror A curved mirror is a mirror with a curved reflecting surface. The surface may be either ''convex'' (bulging outward) or ''concave'' (recessed inward). Most curved mirrors have surfaces that are shaped like part of a sphere, but other shapes are ...

+  = ,

where is the distance from the object to the center of the lens or mirror, is the distance from the lens or mirror to the image, and is the

focal length The focal length of an Optics, optical system is a measure of how strongly the system converges or diverges light; it is the Multiplicative inverse, inverse of the system's optical power. A positive focal length indicates that a system Converge ...

of the lens or mirror. Interchanging the object and image positions does not change the result of the formula. In a

telescope A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption, or Reflection (physics), reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally, it was an optical instrument using len ...

, the subject

focal plane In Gaussian optics, the cardinal points consist of three pairs of points located on the optical axis of a rotationally symmetric, focal, optical system. These are the '' focal points'', the principal points, and the nodal points; there are two ...

is at infinity and the conjugate image plane, at which the

image sensor An image sensor or imager is a sensor that detects and conveys information used to form an image. It does so by converting the variable attenuation of light waves (as they refraction, pass through or reflection (physics), reflect off objects) into s ...

is placed, is said to be an infinite conjugate. In

microscopy Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view subjects too small to be seen with the naked eye (objects that are not within the resolution range of the normal eye). There are three well-known branches of microscopy: optical mic ...

and

macro photography Macro photography (or photomacrography or macrography, and sometimes macrophotography) is extreme close-up photography, usually of very small subjects and living organisms like insects, in which the size of the subject in the photograph is g ...

, the subject is close to the lens, so the plane at which the image sensor is placed is said to be a finite conjugate. Within a system with relay lenses or

eyepiece An eyepiece, or ocular lens, is a type of lens that is attached to a variety of optical devices such as Optical telescope, telescopes and microscopes. It is named because it is usually the lens that is closest to the eye when someone looks thro ...

s, there may be planes that are conjugate to the

aperture In optics, the aperture of an optical system (including a system consisting of a single lens) is the hole or opening that primarily limits light propagated through the system. More specifically, the entrance pupil as the front side image o ...

References

Geometrical optics {{optics-stub