Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2017/iii/paper-338/1/c/iv/solution

is the Abbe number, a dimensionless inverse measure of optical dispersion. Large means weak dispersion. The Abbe diagram below spans a representative visible-light optical glass range, roughly and . The shaded families are schematic, not exact catalogue boundaries; modern compositions overlap and include high-index crown glasses.
For a usual positive objective, choose component 1 as a higher- crown glass and component 2 as a lower- flint glass. Then , , and : the crown glass is converging, the flint glass diverging, and their dispersive powers cancel while leaving positive net power. The Abbe numbers alone do not set their absolute focal lengths; the specified total focal length does. As a representative pair, , gives , . Representative index and dispersion data are given in SCHOTT's optical-glass data.

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