Conclusion

After outlining the principle and limitations of matrix optics, this article summarizes, in the form of synthetic tables, the various matrices describing elementary optical systems required to study more complex devices. Finally, it offers a calculation method, whose implementation is summarized in a flowchart, to determine the properties of optical instruments, such as the effective focal length, the position of the final or intermediate image, and its magnification.

Although this method provides rapid access to the properties of an instrument, the matrix calculation is limited to the approximation of paraxial optics for systems centered around the optical axis. Nevertheless, a more precise theory exists that is not covered in this article: an extension based on 2 × 2 matrices to 3 × 3 matrices has been developed, introducing an additional angle due to the diffraction...