THE PRACTICE STUDIO
Go slowly. Ask why. Make it yours.
PRACTICE / Spherical mirrors
Read the sign of a virtual image
An object is 10 cm in front of a concave spherical mirror of focal length 15 cm. Use the real-positive convention: real object and real image distances are positive.
Find the signed image distance.
Organize the givens & assumptions
- Real object distance: +10 cm
- Concave mirror focal length: +15 cm
- Real-positive distance convention
Paraxial rays and ideal spherical mirror. Negative image distance means a virtual image behind the mirror in this convention.
- A
- B
- C
- D
Try it on paper first. Free sample problems in every collection include the complete reasoning: find one in this collection →