Dental loupes are small devices that help to provide required amount of magnification. These important dentistry tools are normally attached to the frames and their main purpose is to give the operator an opportunity to view the magnified object clearly and easily. Dental loupes work on the principle of refraction of light, which takes place through a number of lenses.

Typically, the lenses within the loupes are transparent objects that are normally either constructed out of glass or plastic. These lenses have a minimum of one curved surface. Both glass as well as plastic offers the same kind of optical qualities though it must be said that glass is a heavier material as compared to plastic.

The lens in the loupe helps to magnify objects by refracting the light that it comes into contact with. Light is normally thought of as being a wave and when it impacts the surface of the lens it makes these waves change their direction or refract. After that all of the waves of light will focus to a spot behind the lens. This is known as the focal spot.

When an operator uses dental loupes he or she will be looking at objects through the lenses. Since the light direction changes, the rays seem like they are coming from a point that is closer to the individual than where they really are. The result of this refraction is that an object seems to be larger than it really is.

Dental loupes help dentists and hygienists see objects with greater clarity. When the operator uses these loupes to view a tooth in the patient’s mouth, the light from the room or sun will be reflected off the surface of the tooth. When this happens the operator can see the tooth clearly. This is because light is reflected off the tooth and it hits the lens and makes the light refract.

The light that is refracted then passes through the eyes of the operator and this light becomes focused on the retina allowing the operator’s brain to process the image. Since the lenses cause the light to refract the image appears to be closer to the operator’s eyes than it really is. This allows the dentist or operator to see small details with greater clarity, and that in turn allows them to diagnose and treat the problem with more accuracy and precision.

Dental loupes are available in multiple numbers of magnifications. Generally the loupes start with 2x magnification though it is also possible to use loupes with 6x magnification. The amount of magnification is influenced by the focal length, which in turn is the distance from the middle of the lens to the point where light waves are focused. A short focal length will require a more powerful lens and it will also produce greater magnification of the image.

Now that you know how dental loupes work you need to understand the importance of lenses when purchasing the loupes. When the time comes to select a loupe you need to keep the following in mind. First of all, plastic lenses are lighter in weight and thus are more comfortable as compared to lenses made from glass. Secondly, a bigger sized lens will permit greater amount of light to pass and this results in a brighter image.