The Geometry of Focal Sets

Authors Brendan Guilfoyle, Wilhelm Klingenberg

Publication date 9 November 2004

Applications of global differential geometry to the sciences (53C80) Geometric optics (78A05) Differential line geometry (53A25)

Abstract: The space

B b b L

of oriented lines, or rays, in

{B b b R}^{3}

is a 4-dimensional space with an abundance of natural geometric structure. In particular, it boasts a neutral K"ahler metric which is closely related to the Euclidean metric on

{B b b R}^{3}

. In this paper we explore the relationship between the focal set of a line congruence (or 2-parameter family of oriented lines in

{B b b R}^{3}

) and the geometry induced on the associated surface in

B b b L

. The physical context of such sets is geometric optics in a homogeneous isotropic medium, and so, to illustrate the method, we compute the focal set of the

k^{t h}

reflection of a point source off the inside of a cylinder. The focal sets, which we explicitly parameterize, exhibit unexpected symmetries, and are found to fit well with observable phenomena.

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