|
Forum: General Photography
01-08-2018, 12:52 PM
|
| |
Pretty much agree with everything you've said, and have many additional quastions, but as noted, I'll maintain open-minded skepticism. My expectation is that these lenses, if ever applied to photography, will first appear in front of very small sensors, perhaps on cell phones. I'm very dubious about the simplicity of going from a metalens a few millimeters in size to one two or three centimeters in diameter. I think problems will arise that metalens advocates do not as yet anticipate.
|
|
Forum: General Photography
01-03-2018, 07:39 AM
|
| |
If I read correctly, the manufacturing process is akin to making a computer chip, so the technology is there and according to the advocates, the process is "scalable," = you can make them from one square mm to one square meter with no change in design, any more than you change making cloth for a handkerchief versus a king bed sheet. BUT, we all have questions about that. Glass lenses can be made larger, but major problems arise. Making a 50mm f1.4 lens is one thing, making a 500mm f1.4 is something else. However, I doubt that I will live long enough to see multiple K-mount metalenses, or even one.
|
|
Forum: General Photography
01-02-2018, 07:57 AM
|
| |
Many thanks to adding a link to more extensive information:)
|
|
Forum: General Photography
01-02-2018, 07:24 AM
|
| |
Many question similar questions arise:
1) what is the maximum aperture? f1.4? f11?
2) is it possible to have a the equivalent of an iris diaphragm?
3) can these be made for any focal length?
4) can these be made into a zoom? If so, of what FL ratio?
5) is there any edge fall-off in IQ?
6) are there limits to the image circle (FF, APS-C, MFT, only tiny P&S size sensors)
7) could these be combined with conventional glass lenses to add a variable aperture, zoom, better edge definition, etc?
However, the designers appear to be optimistic that metalenses will eventually replace glass lenses in cameras & binoculars.
I remember reading an article in "Scientific American" back in the 1950's. It dealt with the design of optics and was observing that aspheric lenses had significant advantages for correcting some aberrations, but the technology for making them was still short of being applied for practical manufacture.
|
|
Forum: General Photography
01-02-2018, 06:43 AM
|
| |
Sorry if there is another thread dealing with this technological breakthrough. As I understand the news release I just read, "metalenses" are made of metal rather than glass, with holes to allow light to pass through and be focused in the manner of a glass lens. A recent breakthrough in design has produced a metalens that can focus all wavelengths to the same point = zero chromatic aberration (=100% perfectly apochromatic). Thus a single metalens that is thinner that a single double-convex glass lens can potentially focus an image that is sharper than a multi-element camera lens, and is also potentially easier and cheaper to make!! The people working on these expect they will begin to replace glass lenses first in high-precision optics for use, for example, in satellites and landers sent to the Moon, etc., but they will eventually find their way into ordinary cameras and binoculars with the potential to outperform the best glass lens systems that incorporate both ED and aspheric elements, and the entire device will be smaller, lighter, and significantly less expensive. JEEPERS:eek::eek::eek::eek: if it is all true.
|
