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Concept
Dioptre
Summary
A dioptre (British spelling) or diopter (American spelling), symbol dpt, is a unit of measurement with dimension of reciprocal length, equivalent to one reciprocal metre, 1 dpt = 1 m−1. It is normally used to express the optical power of a lens or curved mirror, which is a physical quantity equal to the reciprocal of the focal length, expressed in metres. For example, a 3-dioptre lens brings parallel rays of light to focus at metre. A flat window has an optical power of zero dioptres, as it does not cause light to converge or diverge. Dioptres are also sometimes used for other reciprocals of distance, particularly radii of curvature and the vergence of optical beams.
The main benefit of using optical power rather than focal length is that the thin lens formula has the object distance, image distance, and focal length all as reciprocals. Additionally, when relatively thin lenses are placed close together their powers approximately add. Thus, a thin 2.0-dioptre lens placed close to a thin 0.5-dioptre lens yields almost the same focal length as a single 2.5-dioptre lens.
Though the dioptre is based on the SI-metric system, it has not been included in the standard, so that there is no international name or symbol for this unit of measurement—within the international system of units, this unit for optical power would need to be specified explicitly as the inverse metre (m−1). However most languages have borrowed the original name and some national standardization bodies like DIN specify a unit name (dioptrie, dioptria, etc.). In vision care the symbol D is frequently used.
The idea of numbering lenses based on the reciprocal of their focal length in metres was first suggested by Albrecht Nagel in 1866. The term dioptre was proposed by French ophthalmologist Ferdinand Monoyer in 1872, based on earlier use of the term dioptrice by Johannes Kepler.
The fact that optical powers are approximately additive enables an eye care professional to prescribe corrective lenses as a simple correction to the eye's optical power, rather than doing a detailed analysis of the entire optical system (the eye and the lens).
Official source
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