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Radius of curvature. Radius of curvature and center of curvature. In differential geometry, the radius of curvature, R, is the reciprocal of the curvature. For a curve, it equals the radius of the circular arc which best approximates the curve at that point. For surfaces, the radius of curvature is the radius of a circle that best fits a normal ...
The curvature is the reciprocal of radius of curvature. That is, the curvature is =, where R is the radius of curvature [5] (the whole circle has this curvature, it can be read as turn 2π over the length 2π R). This definition is difficult to manipulate and to express in formulas.
In differential geometry, the Gaussian curvature or Gauss curvature Κ of a smooth surface in three-dimensional space at a point is the product of the principal curvatures, κ1 and κ2, at the given point: For example, a sphere of radius r has Gaussian curvature 1 r2 everywhere, and a flat plane and a cylinder have Gaussian curvature ...
The equations below assume a beam with a circular cross-section at all values of z; this can be seen by noting that a single transverse dimension, r, appears.Beams with elliptical cross-sections, or with waists at different positions in z for the two transverse dimensions (astigmatic beams) can also be described as Gaussian beams, but with distinct values of w 0 and of the z = 0 location for ...
The Frenet–Serret formulas are frequently introduced in courses on multivariable calculus as a companion to the study of space curves such as the helix. A helix can be characterized by the height 2π h and radius r of a single turn. The curvature and torsion of a helix (with constant radius) are given by the formulas.
The radius of curvature at the origin, which is the vertex of the parabola, is twice the focal length. Corollary A concave mirror that is a small segment of a sphere behaves approximately like a parabolic mirror, focusing parallel light to a point midway between the centre and the surface of the sphere.
The product k 1 k 2 of the two principal curvatures is the Gaussian curvature, K, and the average (k 1 + k 2)/2 is the mean curvature, H. If at least one of the principal curvatures is zero at every point, then the Gaussian curvature will be 0 and the surface is a developable surface. For a minimal surface, the mean curvature is zero at every ...
Curvature of general surfaces was first studied by Euler. In 1760 [4] he proved a formula for the curvature of a plane section of a surface and in 1771 [5] he considered surfaces represented in a parametric form. Monge laid down the foundations of their theory in his classical memoir L'application de l'analyse à la géometrie which appeared in ...