Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 16, 2026

10:52
Direct Imaging of Laser-driven Ultrafast Molecular Rotation
Published on: February 4, 2017
Propagation of ultrashort pulses through lenses
Applied Optics
|February 20, 2010
Abstract:
Ordinary optical components may behave in extraordinary ways when illuminated with ultrashort optical pulses. In the cases of lenses, only the flat lenses such as Fresnel lenses, Fresnel zone plates, and holographic lenses display such anomalies. For them, the pulse may be both elongated temporally and spread spatially unless very high focal number lenses are used.
Related Concept Videos
Propagation of Waves
When a wave propagates from one medium to another, part of it may get reflected in the first medium, and part of it may get transmitted to the second medium. In such a case, the interface of the two mediums can be considered as a boundary that is neither fixed nor free.
Consider a scenario where a wave propagates from a string of low linear mass density to a string of high linear mass density. In such a case, the reflected wave is out of phase with respect to the incident wave, however the...
Consider a scenario where a wave propagates from a string of low linear mass density to a string of high linear mass density. In such a case, the reflected wave is out of phase with respect to the incident wave, however the...
Propagation Speed of Electromagnetic Waves
Electromagnetic waves are consistent with Ampere's law. Assuming there is no conduction current Ampere's law is given as:
Focusing of Light in the Eye
Light rays enter the eye through the cornea, a transparent dome-shaped tissue that is the eye's outermost layer. The cornea bends or refracts, light rays traveling to the pupil. The shape of the cornea determines how much of the light is bent and whether the image will be focused correctly on the retina at the back of the eye. Once the light has passed through both refraction layers, it converges into a single focal point onto a small area. This is where photoreceptors start transforming...

