Fresnel lens
noun
Optics. a large lens with a surface of concentric grooves of prismatic profile, used in automobile headlights, searchlights, spotlights, etc.
QUIZZES
BECOME A PRO CHEF WITH THIS EXQUISITE CUISINE QUIZ!
Even if you can't be a professional chef, you can at least talk like one with this vocabulary quiz.
Question 1 of 9
You may have read the word "simmer" in a recipe or two, but what does it really mean?
Origin of Fresnel lens
First recorded in 1840–50; see origin at fresnel
Words nearby Fresnel lens
freshwater, freshwater drum, freshwater pearl, fresnel, Fresnel biprism, Fresnel lens, Fresnel mirrors, Fresno, fress, fret, fretboard
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
noun
a lens consisting of a number of smaller lenses arranged to give a flat surface of short focal length
Word Origin for Fresnel lens
C20: named after Augustin Jean Fresnel (1788–1827), French physicist
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
[ frə-nĕl′ ]
A thin optical lens consisting of concentric rings of segmental lenses and having a short focal length. Placing a light source at the focal point of the lens gives rise to a strong beam of nearly parallel rays. Fresnel lenses are used primarily in spotlights, lighthouses, and the headlights of motor vehicles.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.