Chapter 23, Mirrors and Lenses

CHAPTER 23
Conceptual Questions

C1. An eyeglass lens is cut with one surface having a radius R 1 and the other surface having a
radius R2, with R1 < R2. Both positive radii are measured from the same side with R 1 being
the side closer to the eye. Is this convex-concave lens a converging lens or a diverging lens?

a. This is a converging lens.

b. This is a diverging lens.
c. This can be either a converging or diverging lens, as more information is needed for
a final determination.
d. This is neither, since a lens cannot be made this way.

C2. A concave mirror has radius R. When an object is located a distance 2R from the lens, which
describes the image formed?

a. real, inverted, diminished

b. real, inverted, enlarged
c. virtual, upright, diminished
d. real, inverted, of equal size

C3. A convex lens has a focal length of magnitude F. At which of the following distances from
this lens would a real object give an inverted virtual image?

a. ½ F
b. 2F
c. Any value greater than 2F.
d. This cannot be done with a convex lens.

C4. A real object is place a distance d from a converging lens. The object is then moved to a
distance 2d from the converging lens. Which of the following statements is false?

a. The image in the first case with the object at distance d can be the larger one.
b. The image in the second case with the object at distance 2d can be the larger one.
c. If both images are real, the image in the second case is smaller.
d. If the image in the first case is real, the image in the second case is upright.

C5. A real object is place to the left of a converging lens and an image forms. Then, to the right
of the converging lens a diverging lens is placed. A real, inverted final image forms to the
right of the diverging lens. Which of the following could give this result?

a. An upright virtual image caused by the first lens forms between the two lenses.
b. An inverted real image caused by the first lens forms between the two lenses.
c. A real, upright image was formed by the first lens to the right of where the diverging
lens is to be placed.
d. A real, inverted image was formed by the first lens to the right of where the diverging
lens is to be placed.
23.1 Flat Mirrors

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1. You stand two feet away from a plane mirror. How far is it from you to your image?

a. 2.0 ft
b. 3.0 ft
c. 4.0 ft
d. 5.0 ft

2. Which of the following best describes the image from a plane mirror?

a. virtual and magnification greater than one

b. real and magnification less than one
c. virtual and magnification equal to one
d. real and magnification equal to one

3. When the reflection of an object is seen in a plane mirror, the image is:

a. real and upright.

b. real and inverted.
c. virtual and upright.
d. virtual and inverted.

4. When the reflection of an object is seen in a plane mirror, the distance from the mirror to the
image depends on:

a. the wavelength of light used for viewing.

b. the distance from the object to the mirror.
c. the distance of both the observer and the object to the mirror.
d. the size of the object.

5. If a man wishes to use a plane mirror on a wall to view both his head and his feet as he
stands in front of the mirror, the required length of the mirror:

a. is equal to the height of the man.

b. is equal to one half the height of the man.
c. depends on the distance the man stands from the mirror.
d. depends on both the height of the man and the distance from the man to the mirror.

6. The lateral magnification for a flat mirror:

a. is a function of the object distance.

b. is a function of the image distance.
c. is a function of the object and image distance.
d. is 1.

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7. How large should a wall-mounted mirror be to view the upper half of one’s height, h?

a. h
b. h/2
c. h/4
d. The answer is not given.

23.2 Images Formed by Concave Mirrors

23.3 Convex Mirrors and Sign Conventions

8. The real image of an object is located 45.0 cm away from a concave mirror, which has a
focal length of 10.0 cm. How far is the object from the mirror?

a. 40.0 cm
b. 35.0 cm
c. 22.5 cm
d. 12.9 cm

9. A concave mirror forms a real image at 25.0 cm from the mirror surface along the principal
axis. If the corresponding object is at a 10.0-cm distance, what is the mirror’s focal length?

a. 1.43 cm
b. 16.7 cm
c. 12.4 cm
d. 7.14 cm

10. If a virtual image is formed along the principal axis 10 cm from a concave mirror with the
focal length 15 cm, what is the object distance from the mirror?

a. 30 cm
b. 10 cm
c. 12 cm
d. 6.0 cm

11. If a virtual image is formed 10.0 cm along the principal axis from a convex mirror of focal
length –15.0 cm, how far is the object from the mirror?

a. 30.0 cm
b. 10.0 cm
c. 6.00 cm
d. 3.00 cm

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12. A woman looking in a makeup mirror sees her face at twice its actual size and right-side up.
If she is 28.0 cm from the mirror, what is its focal length?

a. 18.6 cm
b. 44.0 cm
c. 48.3 cm
d. 56.0 cm

13. Which best describes the image of a concave mirror when the object is located somewhere
between the focal point and twice the focal point distance from the mirror?

a. virtual, upright and magnification greater than one

b. real, inverted and magnification less than one
c. virtual, upright and magnification less than one
d. real, inverted and magnification greater than one

14. Which of the following best describes the image of a concave mirror when the object is at a
distance greater than twice the focal point distance from the mirror?

a. virtual, upright and magnification greater than one

b. real, inverted and magnification less than one
c. virtual, upright and magnification less than one
d. real, inverted and magnification greater than one

15. Which of the following best describes the image of a concave mirror when the object’s
distance from the mirror is less than the focal point distance?

a. virtual, upright and magnification greater than one

b. real, inverted and magnification less than one
c. virtual, upright and magnification less than one
d. real, inverted and magnification greater than one

16. Which of the following best describes the image of a convex mirror when the object’s
distance from the mirror is less than the absolute value of the focal point distance?

a. virtual, upright and magnification greater than one

b. real, inverted and magnification less than one
c. virtual, upright and magnification less than one
d. real, inverted and magnification greater than one

17. A convex mirror with focal length of 20 cm forms an image 12 cm behind the surface.
Where is the object located as measured from the surface?

a. 7.5 cm
b. 15 cm
c. 22 cm
d. 30 cm

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18. A convex mirror with a focal length of 20 cm forms an image 15 cm behind the surface. If
the object height is 1.2 cm what is the image height?

a. 0.30 cm
b. 0.75 cm
c. 0.94 cm
d. 3.0 cm

19. An object placed 12 cm from a concave mirror produces a real image 8.0 cm from the mirror.
If the object is now moved to a new position 18.0 cm from the mirror, where is the new
image located as measured from the mirror?

a. 3.0 cm
b. 6.5 cm
c. 9.2 cm
d. 14.6 cm

20. An object is held at a distance of 12 cm from a convex mirror creating an image that is 1/3
the object size. What is the focal length of the mirror?

a. 6.0 cm
b. 3.0 cm
c. 9.0 cm
d. 18 cm

21. When the reflection of an object is seen in a concave mirror the image will:

a. always be real.
b. always be virtual.
c. may be either real or virtual.
d. will always be enlarged.

22. When the reflection of an object is seen in a convex mirror the image will:

a. always be real.
b. always be virtual.
c. may be either real or virtual.
d. will always be enlarged.

23. Parallel rays of light that hit a concave mirror will come together:

a. at the center of curvature.

b. at the focal point.
c. at a point half way to the focal point.
d. at infinity.

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24. A girl is standing in front of a concave mirror. Consider two rays of light, one from her nose
and one from her mouth that are parallel as they are traveling toward the mirror. These rays
will come together:

a. at the focal point.

b. at the center of curvature.
c. at the image point.
d. behind the mirror if she is too close to the mirror.

25. A candle is 49.0 cm in front of a convex spherical mirror of radius of curvature 70.0 cm.
What are the image distance and the magnification, respectively?

a. 20.4 cm, +0.417

b. +20.4 cm, 0.417
c. +122.5 cm, +2.50
d. 20.4 cm, 0.417

26. An object 2 cm high is placed 10 cm in front of a mirror. What type of mirror and what
radius of curvature is needed for an image that is upright and 4 cm tall?

a. Concave, R = 20 cm
b. Concave, R = 40 cm
c. Convex, R = 10 cm
d. Convex, R = 20 cm

27. An object is 12.0 cm from the surface of a spherical Christmas tree ornament that is 8.00 cm
in diameter. What is the magnification of the image?

a. 0.200
b. 0.500
c. +0.143
d. +0.250

28. An object is placed 10 cm in front of a mirror, and an image is formed that has a
magnification of 2. Which of the following statements is true?

a. The focal length of the mirror is 30 cm.

b. The image is real.
c. There is not enough information to select the correct answer.
d. This is the only true statement.

29. An object is placed 10 cm in front of a mirror, and an image is formed that has a
magnification of 2. Which of the following statements is false?

a. The focal length of the mirror is 20 cm.

b. The image is virtual.
c. There is enough information to select the correct answer.
d. This is the only true statement.

23.4 Images Formed by Refraction

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30. Ron fills a beaker with glycerin (n = 1.473) to a depth of 5.0 cm. If he looks straight down
through the glycerin surface, he will perceive the liquid to be what apparent depth?

a. 7.4 cm
b. 5.0 cm
c. 3.4 cm
d. 1.0 cm

31. A solid glass sphere with a radius of 5.00 cm and index of refraction of 1.52 has a small coin
embedded 3.00 cm from the front surface of the sphere. For the viewer looking at the coin
through the glass, at what distance from the front surface of the glass does the coin’s image
appear to be located?

a. 2.48 cm
b. 3.20 cm
c. 5.00 cm
d. 6.85 cm

32. A glass block, for which n = 1.52, has a blemish located 3.2 cm from one surface. At what
distance from that surface does the image of the blemish appear to the outside observer?

a. 1.6 cm
b. 2.1 cm
c. 4.9 cm
d. 6.4 cm

33. A goldfish is swimming in water (n = 1.33) inside a spherical plastic bowl of index of
refraction 1.33. If the goldfish is 10 cm from the front wall of the 15-cm radius bowl, where
does the goldfish appear to an observer in front of the bowl?

a. 6.0 cm behind the plastic

b. 7.0 cm behind the plastic
c. 8.0 cm behind the plastic
d. 9.0 cm behind the plastic

34. A container is filled with fluid 1 and the apparent depth of the fluid is 5 cm. The container is
next filled with fluid 2, and the apparent depth of this fluid is 4 cm. What is the ratio of the
indices of refraction of these fluids?

a. n1/n2 = 5/4
b. n1/n2 = 4/5
c. n1/n2 = 4 5
d. More information is needed to find the ratio.

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35. A container is filled with fluid 1, and the apparent depth of the fluid is 5.00 cm. The
container is next filled with fluid 2, and the apparent depth of this fluid is 4.00 cm. If the
index of refraction of the first fluid is 1.60, what is the index of refraction of the second
fluid?

a. 2.00
b. 1.79
c. 1.28
d. More information is needed to find the value.

36. An object of length 3.00 cm is inside a plastic block with index of refraction 1.40. If the
object is viewed from directly above, what is the length of its image?

a. 3.00 cm
b. 4.20 cm
c. 2.13 cm
d. 0.467 cm

37. An object of length 3.00 cm is inside a plastic block with index of refraction 1.40. If the
object is viewed through the top surface of the block at a non-zero angle from the normal,
where is the object relative to its image?

a. in the same direction as its image

b. above the direction of its image
c. below the direction of its image
d. More information is needed.

23.5 Atmospheric Refraction

38. Atmospheric refraction of light rays is responsible for:

a. spherical aberration.
b. mirages.
c. chromatic aberration.
d. light scattering.

39. If atmospheric refraction did not occur, how would the apparent time of sunrise and sunset be
changed?

a. Both would be later.

b. Both would be earlier.
c. Sunrise would be later and sunset earlier.
d. Sunrise would be earlier and sunset later.

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23.6 Thin Lenses

40. A 3.0 cm tall object is placed along the principal axis of a thin convex lens of 30.0 cm focal
length. If the object distance is 40.0 cm, which of the following best describes the image
distance and height, respectively?

a. 17.3 cm and 7.0 cm

b. 120 cm and 9.0 cm
c. 17.3 cm and 1.3 cm
d. 120 cm and 1.0 cm

41. Which of the following best describes the image for a thin convex lens that forms whenever
the object is at a distance less than one focal length from the lens?

a. inverted, enlarged and real

b. upright, enlarged and virtual
c. upright, diminished and virtual
d. inverted, diminished and real

42. Which of the following best describes the image for a thin concave lens that forms whenever
the magnitude of the object distance is less than that of the lens' focal length?

a. inverted, enlarged and real

b. upright, enlarged and virtual
c. upright, diminished and virtual
d. inverted, diminished and real

43. An object is placed at a distance of 30 cm from a thin convex lens along its axis. The lens
has a focal length of 10 cm. What are the values, respectively, of the image distance and
magnification?

a. 60 cm and 2.0
b. 15 cm and 2.0
c. 60 cm and 0.50
d. 15 cm and 0.50

44. Sally places an object 6.0 cm from a thin convex lens along its axis. The lens has a focal
length of 9.0 cm. What are the respective values of the image distance and magnification?

a. 18 cm and 3.0

b. 18 cm and 3.0
c. 3.0 cm and 0.50
d. 18 cm and 3.0

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45. Ansel places an object 30 cm from a thin convex lens along the axis. If a real image forms at
a distance of 10 cm from the lens, what is the focal length of the lens?

a. 30 cm
b. 15 cm
c. 10 cm
d. 7.5 cm

46. An object is placed at a distance of 50 cm from a thin lens along the axis. If a real image
forms at a distance of 40 cm from the lens, on the opposite side from the object, what is the
focal length of the lens?

a. 22 cm
b. 45 cm
c. 90 cm
d. 200 cm

47. Ellen places an object 40.0 cm from a concave lens. If a virtual image appears 10.0 cm from
the lens on the same side as the object, what is the focal length of the lens?

a. 50.0 cm
b. 13.3 cm
c. 10.0 cm
d. 8.00 cm

48. Two thin lenses with focal lengths 25.0 cm and 30.0 cm are placed in contact in an
orientation so that their optic axes coincide. What is the focal length of the two in
combination? (Hint: A thin lens is one whose thickness is negligible).

a. 13.6 cm
b. 27.5 cm
c. 55.0 cm
d. 150 cm

49. Two thin lenses, with focal lengths of 25.0 cm and 30.0 cm are placed in contact in an
orientation so that their optic axes coincide. What is the focal length of the two in
combination? {Hint: A thin lens is one whose thickness is negligible).

a. 5.0 cm
b. 13.6 cm
c. 55.5 cm
d. 150 cm

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50. Two thin lenses with 10.0-cm focal lengths at are mounted at opposite ends of a 30.0-cm
long tube. An object is located 45.0 cm from one end of the tube. How far from the opposite
end is the final image?

a. 12.8 cm
b. 24.0 cm
c. 25.6 cm
d. 33.6 cm

51. A projector lens is needed to form an image on a screen 10 times the size of its
corresponding object. The screen is located 8.0 m from the lens. What is the required focal
length of the lens?

a. 0.32 m
b. 0.54 m
c. 0.73 m
d. 1.25 m

52. An object, located 90 cm from a concave lens, forms an image 60 cm from the lens on the
same side as the object. What is the focal length of the lens?

a. 36 cm
b. 75 cm
c. 180 cm
d. 150 cm

53. Two convex thin lenses with focal lengths 10.0 cm and 20.0 cm are aligned on a common
axis, running left to right, the 10-cm lens being on the left. A distance of 20.0 cm separates
the lenses. An object is located at a distance of 15.0 cm to the left of the 10-cm lens. Where
will the final image appear as measured from the 20-cm lens?

a. 13.3 cm
b. 6.67 cm
c. +6.67 cm
d. +13.3 cm

54. An object and a screen are separated by 20.00 cm. A convex lens is placed between them,
5.00 cm from the object. In this position it causes a sharp image of the object to form on the
screen. What is the focal length of the lens?

a. 15.0 cm
b. 5.00 cm
c. 3.75 cm
d. 2.00 cm

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55. For a converging lens with two curved surfaces, the radius of curvature for both surfaces is
10 cm. If the focal length is 10 cm, what must the index of refraction be?

a. 1.5
b. 2.0
c. 2.5
d. 3.0

56. For a diverging lens with one flat surface, the radius of curvature for the curved surface is
20.0 cm. What must the index of refraction be so that the focal length is 15.0 cm?

a. 0.333
b. 1.33
c. 2.33
d. 5.00

57. A converging lens with two convex surfaces has a front surface with radius of curvature of
10.0 cm; the back surface has radius of curvature of 20.0 cm, and it is made from material
with an index of refraction of 2.50. What is the focal length of the lens?

a. 4.44 cm
b. 13.3 cm
c. 13.3 cm
d. 0.250 cm

58. What is the image distance of an object 1.00 m in front of a converging lens of focal length
20.0 cm?

a. +16.7 cm
b. +20.0 cm
c. +25.0 cm
d. +33.3 cm

59. When an image is inverted compared to the object, it is also:

a. virtual.
b. reversed left to right.
c. enlarged.
d. diminished.

60. A contact lens is made of plastic with an index of refraction 1.50. The lens has an outer
radius of curvature of +2.0 cm and an inner radius of curvature of +2.5 cm. What is its focal
length?

a. 20 cm
b. +6.7 cm
c. +10 cm
d. +20 cm

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61. A 100-cm focal length thin lens is placed in contact with one of 66.7 cm focal length. An
object is placed 50 cm in front of the combination. What is the image distance?

a. 40 cm
b. –25 cm
c. 67 cm
d. 200 cm

62. A 100-cm focal length thin lens is placed in contact with one of 66.7 cm focal length. A 3.0
cm tall object is placed 50 cm in front of the combination. What is the size of the image?

a. 3.8 cm
b. 1.9 cm
c. 4.0 cm
d. 12 cm

63. Three thin lenses, each of focal length f, are placed in contact. What is the resulting focal
length of the combination?

a. f
b. 3f
c. f/3
d. 3/f

64. An image is formed using a convex lens, the image being 15 cm past the lens. A second lens
is placed 25 cm past the first lens and another image is formed, this time 10 cm past the
second lens. Which of the following statements is true?

a. The last image is inverted with regard to the original object.

b. The last image must be larger than the object.
c. The first image is virtual.
d. None of the above statements is true.

65. An image is formed using a convex lens, the image being 15 cm past the lens. A second lens
is placed 25 cm past the first lens and another image is formed, this time 10 cm past the
second lens. Which of the following statements is always true?

a. Both of the lenses have positive focal lengths.

b. The first lens is diverging, and the second is converging.
c. The first lens is converging, and the second is diverging.
d. None of the above statements is true.

66. An object is placed 25 cm to the left of a lens of focal length 20 cm. 75 cm to the right of this
lens is a plane mirror. Where does the final image form?

a. 25 cm to the right of the mirror

b. 25 cm to the left of the mirror
c. 50 cm to the left of the lens
d. 100 cm to the left of the lens

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67. A lens has a focal length of 60 cm in air. If this lens were immersed in water, what focal
length would result? The index of refraction of the lens is 1.500 and that of water is 1.333.
The focal length of a thin lens with index n1 submerged in a liquid with index n2 is given by
1  n1  1 1 
the modified lens maker’s formula:    1   .
f  n2  R1 R2 

a. 240 cm
b. 68 cm
c. 53 cm
d. 15 cm

23.7 Lens and Mirror Aberrations

68. Which of the following effects is the result of the fact that the index of refraction of glass
will vary with wavelength?

a. spherical aberration
b. mirages
c. chromatic aberration
d. light scattering

69. In an ideal case rays coming from an object toward a lens or mirror should be reasonably
close to the optic axis. To the extent that this condition is not completely met, which one of
the following effects occurs?

a. spherical aberration
b. mirages
c. chromatic aberration
d. light scattering

70. A fused combination of a diverging and converging lens pair each made from a different
index of refraction glass, is used to reduce the occurrence of which of the following effects?

a. spherical aberration
b. mirages
c. chromatic aberration
d. light scattering

71. Reducing the lens aperture size is a scheme one can use to reduce the occurrence of which of
the following effects?

a. spherical aberration
b. mirages
c. chromatic aberration
d. light scattering

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72. Use of a parabolic mirror, instead of one made of a circular arc surface, can be used to reduce
the occurrence of which of the following effects?

a. spherical aberration
b. mirages
c. chromatic aberration
d. light scattering

73. A thin lens has a focal length of 10.00 cm for red light. If the index of refraction for the lens
material tends to decrease with increasing wavelength, what is the focal length of the lens for
blue light?

a. also 10.00 cm
b. less that 10.00 cm
c. more than 10.00 cm
d. It depends on whether the lens is converging or diverging.

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CHAPTER 23 - ANSWERS
# Ans Difficulty # Ans Difficulty

C1. B 2 35. A 2
C2. A 2 36. A 2
C3. D 3 37. C 1
C4. D 2 38. B 1
C5. D 2 39. C 1
1. C 1 40. B 2
2. C 1 41. B 2
3. C 1 42. C 2
4. B 1 43. D 2
5. B 2 44. A 2
6. D 1 45. D 2
7. C 2 46. A 1
8. D 2 47. B 2
9. D 2 48. A 3
10. D 2 49. D 3
11. A 2 50. B 3
12. D 2 51. C 2
13. D 2 52. C 2
14. B 2 53. C 3
15. A 2 54. C 2
16. C 2 55. A 2
17. D 2 56. C 2
18. A 2 57. A 3
19. B 2 58. C 2
20. A 2 59. B 2
21. C 1 60. D 3
22. B 1 61. D 2
23. B 1 62. D 2
24. A 1 63. C 2
25. A 2 64. D 2
26. B 2 65. A 2
27. C 2 66. C 3
28. D 3 67. A 3
29. D 3 68. C 1
30. C 2 69. A 1
31. A 3 70. C 1
32. B 2 71. A 1
33. D 3 72. A 1
34. B 2 73. B 2

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