Sylinterilinsseillä

Sylinterilinsseillä, often translated as cylindrical lenses, are optical lenses that refract light in only one meridian or plane. Unlike spherical lenses which have a uniform curvature across their surface and focus light to a single point, cylindrical lenses have a curvature along one axis and are flat along the perpendicular axis. This asymmetry in curvature results in a line focus rather than a point focus.

The optical power of a cylindrical lens varies with the angle relative to its axis. Light rays parallel to the curved axis pass through the lens undeviated, while light rays perpendicular to this axis are refracted according to the lens's power. This unique property makes them suitable for applications where it is necessary to shape a beam of light into a line or to correct for astigmatism.

In optics, cylindrical lenses are commonly used to correct astigmatism in vision, a condition where the eye's cornea or lens has an irregular shape, causing blurred vision at all distances. By introducing a compensating cylindrical lens into eyeglasses or contact lenses, the uneven curvature of the eye can be corrected, allowing light to focus properly on the retina.

Beyond vision correction, cylindrical lenses find applications in laser systems for beam shaping, such as expanding a laser beam into a line. They are also utilized in imaging systems, scanners, and various scientific instruments where precise manipulation of light in a specific plane is required. The manufacturing of cylindrical lenses involves grinding and polishing techniques tailored to achieve the desired cylindrical shape with high precision.