resolving power

American  

noun

1. Optics. the ability of an optical device to produce separate images of close objects.

2. Photography. the degree to which a lens or photographic emulsion is able to define the details of an image.

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resolving power British  

noun

1. Also called: resolution.  physics

   1. the ability of a microscope, telescope, or other optical instrument to produce separate images of closely placed objects

   2. the ability of a spectrometer to separate two adjacent peaks in a spectrum

2. photog the ability of an emulsion to show up fine detail in an image

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Etymology

Origin of resolving power

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

resolving power

"This is unprecedented and entirely due to Webb's higher resolving power!"

From Science Daily ● Nov. 8, 2023

Two parameters that are important in microscopy are magnification and resolving power.

From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022

The effective resolving power of each observation was obtained from fits to unsaturated telluric absorption lines and yielded mean values of 4,290, 8,150 and 5,750 in the ultraviolet B, visible and near-infrared arms, respectively.

From Nature ● Oct. 15, 2017

A telescope’s resolving power depends on the width of its aperture.

From Economist ● Jan. 7, 2016

The contraction of the diffraction pattern with increase of aperture is of fundamental importance in connexion with the resolving power of optical instruments.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4 "Diameter" to "Dinarchus" by Various