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Project Magnifico
Aniket Kyaswar

Grade 5
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Abstract

Convex lens projects or magnifies an image based on the distance behind it. The

objective of this experiment is to determine the effect of the distance of an image behind a

convex lens on the projected image’s magnification. Popular applications of convex lenses are in

cameras, telescopes, microscopes, human eye, and lighthouses. This knowledge could help in

understanding these various applications in many scenarios.

The mechanism used was a setup consisting of a convex lens (of 5 cm focal length) , a

railing on which the object and a projection surface on sliders can move back and forth, and a

ruler to measure the distance of an image away from the lens and its projection. The image was

moved 5 cm to 30 cm away from the lens. The magnification of the image was recorded by

dividing the size of the projected image by the size of the original image. The trials conducting

the distance 10 cm made up the control group as based on the research, the magnification of the

image projected will be 1 (the same size as the original image).

The hypothesis was that if the distance of an image from the lens decreases, then the

magnification of a projected image will increase. The hypothesis was partially supported. The

group of trials with 5 cm away from the lens results in no clear projected image, just light

scattered. The original image at 5 cm (focal length) was too close to the lens to create a clear

image.

Further research may be to understand the behavior of the combination of concave and

convex lenses as in cameras and measuring the magnification. This would be more complicated

and will have different results.

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Question
What is the effect of the distance of an image behind a convex lens on the projected

image’s magnification?

Research

Scientific Principles

The Principle of Refraction, Snell’s Law, and Refraction rules for converging lenses are

the key scientific principles needed to understand my experiment.

I. Principle of Refraction

Refraction occurs as light passes across the boundary between two medium. Refraction is

the bending of the path of a light wave as it passes from one material to another material, and it

is caused by a change in speed experienced by a wave when it changes medium. A one-word

synonym for refraction is "bending."

II. Snell’s Law

Snell’s Law describes the relationship between the angle of incidence (θ ) and the angle
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of refraction (θ ), measured with respect to the normal (“perpendicular line”) and index of
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refraction of the first and second media. The index of refraction for any medium is a

dimensionless constant equal to the ratio of the speed to light in a vacuum to its speed in that

medium.
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The amount of bending of a light ray as it crosses a boundary between two media is

dictated by the difference in the two indices of refraction. When light passes into a denser

medium, the ray is bent toward the normal. Conversely, light emerging from a denser medium is

bent away from the normal.

‘ Normal
Normal

Focal Point

Focal Length

The above diagram shows the behavior of two incident rays approaching parallel to the

principal axis. In the convex lens, the refraction happens two times. Note that the two rays

converge at a point; this point is known as the focal point of the lens.
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III. Refraction Rules for a Converging Lens

Any incident ray traveling parallel to the principal axis of a converging lens will refract

through the lens and travel through the focal point on the opposite side of the lens.

Any incident ray traveling through the focal point on the way to the lens will refract through the

lens and travel parallel to the principal axis.

Applications

I. How this certain mechanism works.

The screen image facing the lens will release light rays that head for the convex lens. The

light passing through the lens will each take a new path and bend slightly. Eventually, the light

rays will meet and form an identical image. This knowledge is used in the camera industries.

II. Examples of this mechanism in the real-world.

1 Generating Solar
Energy. Rays from
the sun will
converge at the focal Image

point generating heat

2F F F 2F

Object at infinity
2
Microscopes,
Telescopes : When Object
the object is between
F and 2F, it
magnifies the 2F F F 2F Image

images.

Object between F and 2F

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3
Inverting lens of a
telescope. When an
Object 2F
object is placed at
2F, its size is the
same but inverted. 2F F F
Image

Object between F and 2F

4 Human Eye : Far

away objects appear
smaller Object

2F F F 2F
Image

Object outside 2F

5 Lighthouses and
Searchlights. Light
rays projected from
focal point do not Object

meet and send out

beam of light.
2F F F 2F

Object at F

6 Magnifying glasses:
In this case there is
no projected image.
However the image Image
Object
is enlarged on the
lens.
2F F F 2F

Object before F
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Hypothesis
It is predicted that if the distance of an image behind the lens decreases, then the

magnification of a projected image will increase.

As a result, the group of the trials with the distance of five centimeters, the least distance

behind the lens in my experiment, should provide the largest image projected.

Scientific Principles and Reasoning

According to the Principle of Refraction, the light rays from the image bend

through the convex lens and converge at the focal point in front of the lens. If you trace the path

of light, you can find out the size of the image projected. I realized that the magnification

increases when the distance from the lens decreases.

Materials

 1 x railing that is eighty centimeters long

 1 x ruler that measures in centimeters

 1 x ultra-fine permanent marker

 1 x glue gun with five glue sticks

 3 x sliders that can slide on the railing

 1 x convex lens with a focal length of five centimeters

 1 x lens holder that can hold a lens by not covering the front of it

 1 x sharpened pencil

 1 x opaque, flat projecting white surface of size 14 cm x 14 cm

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 1 x glowing LED segment display (a multimeter)

 3 x different rods that allow the object, screen, and lens holder to be at the same height.

Methods

Preparing the Apparatus

1. Gather the materials.

2. Connect all three sliders to the railing in a condition allowing it to move back and forth.

3. Glue the rod meant for the image on the side slider with a glue gun.

4. Glue the rod meant for the object on the other side slider.

5. Glue the last rod meant for the lens holder on the center slider.

6. Glue the lens holder, object, and image on its rods.

7. Mark the points: 5, 10 ,15, 20, 25, and 30 centimeters on the railing with a marker on

both sides of the railing. (the lens rod divides the railing into two sections).

8. Mark the object sides in centimeters with a permanent marker.

9. Place the lens inside the lens holder.

Conducting the experiment

Setting

This experiment will take place in a dark room and in a closed room. There should be no

light in the room except the light of the image, so the chances of other light sources disturbing

the experiment would be less. The results are the most accurate when all other light sources are

canceled.
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Steps

1. Turn on the multimeter’s light.

2. Move the image ten centimeters away from the lens.

3. Adjust the object to get a clear projected image (clear sharp number).

4. Measure the height of the projected clear image with the markings divided by the height

of the original image.

5. Record down the results.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 for 5 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 25 cm, and 30 cm as the distance away from the

lens.

Photos
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Variables and Groups

Independent Variable:

The distance of an image behind a convex lens

Experimental Groups: The groups of trials with 5 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 25 cm, and 30 cm away

from the lens.

Control Group: The group of trials with 10 cm away from the lens

Dependent Variable:

The projected image’s magnification

Constants:

Some constants are the lens curvature, the lens focal length, the lens material, the lens type, the

image size, the image light radiation, the amount of light, the railing, the object texture, the

object size, the slider size, and the amount of light in the room.

Problems Encountered
Earlier, the plan was to have an extra slider for an additional flashlight. The image was

paper, that was illuminated by the light. However, the projected image was very faint and was

hard to see and sometimes one couldn’t make out the image at all. So we switched to using a

LED display (multimeter number display) as it had a stronger light.

Earlier, the plan was to have a 10 cm focal length lens ( The experiment uses a 5 cm focal

length lens now ). With the 10cm focal length, the railing would have to be too long, making the

setup too big. So we used a 5cm focal length lens, as it was easier to manage. Sometimes, the
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100 mm focal length lens was too heavy for the lens holder and tilted multiple times, giving

unclear results to record.

Building a railing was not an easy task as it was hard to build it and make objects slide.

However, we found the hot wheels railing a perfect candidate with the sliders helping image and

projecting surface easily move back and forth. This made movement of the pieces easier and

made the experiment more efficient to work with.

Data

Distance vs Magnification
1.2
Magnification (Magnification)

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
5 10 15 20 25 30

Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Trial 4 Trial 5 Trial 6 Trial 7 Trial 8

Distance (cm)
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Average
1.2
Magnification (Magnification)

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
5 10 15 20 25 30

Average

Distance (cm)

Results
According to the data, when the distance was 5 cm away from the lens, there was no

image projected, so the magnification was 0. The number display at 5 cm (the focal length) was

too close to the lens to create a clear image. At 10 cm distance, the magnification was 0.97, on

average. At 15 cm distance, the magnification was 0.51, on average. At 20 cm distance, the

magnification was 0.41 on average. At 25 cm distance, the magnification was 0.33 on average.

At 30 cm, the magnification was 0.19 on average.

The 10 cm gap (twice the focal length) was almost the same image as the original image.

From that point onwards, the magnification values kept on decreasing as the number display

started to move farther away.

Some possible sources of error are that the rods might have been slightly bent from

placing the lens and removing it (you must remove the lens because it can break easily), resulting

in unclear data.
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Conclusions
The hypothesis was that as the distance from a number display to a lens decreases, then

the magnification of the projected image will increase. However, the results showed that at 5 cm,

there was no projected image (0 magnification). The group of trials with 10 cm length had the

highest magnification. Hence, the hypothesis was only partially supported.

Heavier research was done and it was revealed that if the image (number display) was at

the focal length, then only light would be projected. The number display at the focal length was

too close to the lens to capture the details of the number display. Any number higher than 5 cm

would create a clear projected image such as the numbers 6 cm or 7 cm.

Magnification was very low when 30 cm away (the farthest distance). It was only around

0.2 magnification. The projected image was almost the size of a pea. This concludes that the

magnification was highest when the distance is the closest highest number to 5.

Camera technology is mind-blowing if seen closer and is an awesome way to capture

photos with outstanding clarity and resolution.

Suggestions for Improvement and Further Research

Possible improvements for the experiment are to have metal rods instead of plastic. The

plastic rods were a bit bendy and made a slight difference to the results. Metal rods don’t bend

very easily like plastic, and the results will be more accurate. Also, a smoother object is needed

because the roughness of an object can affect a projected image.

Further research can include measuring the distance from the object to the lens. The

object needs to be adjusted in order to create a projected image. The point when the object make

the projected image clear will be recorded.

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Acknowledgements
I want to thank my parents for buying me all the materials and for supporting me

throughout the science fair. I want to thank the school for giving me this opportunity. Also, I

want to thank my teacher for the excellent advice.

References
Odessa, CS (January 25, 2022). Ray Tracing Diagram. Concept Draw.Retrieved November 20,
2023 from https://conceptdraw.com/examples/convex-lens-ray-diagram

Singh, M. (May 29, 2023). Convex lens - ray diagram. Teachoo. Retrieved November 20, 2023
from https://www.teachoo.com/10838/3118/

Tessa, Jane (February 17, 2022). Image Formation By Lenses. Shiken. Retrieved November 20,
2023 from https://shiken.ai/physics/image-formation-by-lenses

Fuchs, M. (2023, September 21). Convex lens | Definition. Study.com. Retrieved December 30,
2023 from https://study.com/academy/lesson/convex-lens-definition-equation-
examples.html

Herald, J. (2022, April). Explain the behavior of light rays in any four situations of their
incidence on a convex lens. Toppr Ask. Retrieved December 30, 2023 from
https://www.toppr.com/ask/question/explain-the-behaviour-of-light-rays-in-any-four-
situations/