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• fresnel
  fresnel

  noun

  a unit of frequency, equal to 10 12 cycles per second.
• Fresnel
  Fresnel

  noun

  Augustin Jean, 1788–1827, French physicist.

fresnel

¹ American  

[fruh-nel, fray-nel] / frəˈnɛl, freɪˈnɛl /

noun

1. a unit of frequency, equal to 10 12 cycles per second.

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Fresnel ² American  

[fruh-nel, fray-nel] / frəˈnɛl, freɪˈnɛl /

noun

1. Augustin Jean, 1788–1827, French physicist.

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fresnel ¹ British  

/ ˈfreɪnɛl, frɛnɛl /

noun

1. a unit of frequency equivalent to 10 ¹² hertz

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Fresnel ² British  

/ frɛnɛl /

noun

1. Augustin Jean (oɡystɛ̃ ʒɑ̃). 1788–1827, French physicist: worked on the interference of light, contributing to the wave theory of light

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Fresnel Scientific  

/ frā-nĕl′ /

1. French physicist whose investigations of the interference, diffraction, and polarization of light helped establish the theory that light moves in a wavelike motion. Fresnel also made great contributions to the field of optics, including the development of a compound lens for use in lighthouses.

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Etymology

Origin of fresnel

First recorded in 1935–40; named after Augustin Jean Fresnel

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fresnel Fresnel

But originally, he designed them for lighthouses — it’s the invention that’s said to have saved a million ships — and today, Lego has announced a motorized lighthouse with its very own fresnel lens.

From The Verge ● Aug. 18, 2022

For fire starters he uses a fresnel lens, wax-coated matches.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 2, 2017

The cone-shaped system collects sunlight with a Fresnel lens approximately the size of a household window and channels that light into an optical fiber about as wide as a human hair.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026

Before the 11 a.m. boat ride back to the mainland, Dre Elmore likes to show off the retired Fresnel lens and the array of still-working machinery in the fog signal building.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 11, 2024

The first such lenses were invented by the French scientist Augustin-Jean Fresnel in 1819 to provide lightweight lenses for lighthouses.

From Salon ● Jul. 14, 2023

Once Pigeon Point Light Station is restored to its former glory, the Fresnel lens will be returned to the top of the tower.

From New York Times ● Mar. 27, 2023

Both Young and Fresnel had regarded the vibrations of light as similar to those of sound, and taking place in the direction in which the wave is propagated.

From Heroes of Science: Physicists by William Garnett

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