Optic axis Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun in a doubly refracting crystal, the line in the direction of which no double refraction occurs
    • a crystal may have either one or two optic axes
  2. noun a line that passes through the center of curvature of a lens so that light is neither reflected nor refracted
    principal axis.
    • in a normal eye the optic axis is the direction in which objects are seen most distinctly

WordNet


Definitions
  1. . (Opt.) (a) A line drawn through the center of the eye perpendicular to its anterior and posterior surfaces. In a normal eye it is in the direction of the optic axis that objects are most distinctly seen. (b) The line in a doubly refracting crystal, in the direction of which no double refraction occurs. A uniaxial crystal has one such line, a biaxial crystal has two.

Webster 1913