Sunglasses with polarized lenses reduce glare by filtering out horizontally reflected light. They also make colors more vibrant and provide UV protection.
Light-reflecting off flat surfaces like water or snow becomes intense and can strain the eyes. Sunglasses with polarized lenses contain chemical films that neutralize glare by blocking out these reflected light waves.
Lens Materials
Unlike tinted lenses that darken the lens, polarized sunglasses filter out all disturbing reflections from horizontal surfaces like roads and water. It allows your eyes to see richer colors, sharper contrasts, and more detail. It also reduces eye fatigue and helps you to keep your eyes firmly focused on what you’re seeing and doing.
When light hits a flat surface like the calm, reflective surface of a lake or a smooth road, it bounces off in all directions, creating that super bright effect known as glare. To prevent this, a chemical on polarized lenses creates openings that allow only vertically aligned light to pass through the lens, reducing glare.
This technology is built into the lens material, with either a laminated film (for less expensive sunglasses) or inserted between two layers of glass or plastic for more premium sunglasses. While these lenses are expensive, they provide a clearer, more detailed image and are durable and scratch-resistant.
The one drawback to these lenses is that they can interfere with how you see liquid crystal displays (LCDs) on digital devices such as computers and cell phones. It can make the display more challenging to read and may even cause it to appear blurry or unreadable. For this reason, it’s essential to avoid wearing polarized sunglasses while using these devices or driving a car where the driver needs to use an LCD for essential controls.
Polarization Technology
Polarized sunglasses reduce the horizontal light waves that bounce off water, snow, roads, and other surfaces. These waves irritate the eyes and can make it difficult, if not dangerous, to continue activities like driving, skiing, or sunbathing. These lenses have been treated with a chemical that creates openings in the lens to allow only vertically oriented light through. It works a lot like the slats of a blind; nothing long and horizontal can fit through.
Most glare comes from horizontal reflective surfaces, like the surface of water or the hood of a car. When the unpolarized light hits this surface, it becomes horizontally polarized, which is why you see glare when looking at such a surface. It reduces this glare by blocking out the horizontally polarized light.
There are two kinds of polarized lenses: linear and circular. Linear polarized lenses are best for cutting out glare caused by flat surfaces and are often used in sports glasses and other sunglasses. Circular polarized lenses, however, are better for use indoors and in some types of 3D movies.
To check if your sunglasses are polarized, look at them and hold them up to another pair labeled the same as yours—you should notice a darkening of the reflection in the lenses. Polarized lenses also work well with photochromic lenses, an option for people who need to wear sunglasses throughout the day and want to switch between them depending on the activity.
Sunglasses With Polarized Lenses
Many of us rely on sunglasses to protect us from the sun’s harmful UV rays, but did you know that sunglasses with polarized lenses also help reduce glare? Sunglasses with polarized lenses filter out horizontal light waves that cause glare. It allows vertical wavelengths to pass through the lens, helping you see better.
Glare can make distant objects appear hazy, and it’s also distracting while driving or working outdoors. It can even cause eye strain and lead to headaches in some people. Squinting to gain vision clarity stresses the eyes and can even exacerbate existing eye conditions like cataracts and macular degeneration. Polarized lenses can help eliminate glare from the sun and other sources, making it easier to enjoy outdoor activities.
Light bounces in various directions off an object’s uneven surface, but when it reflects off a flat, smooth surface like calm water or a sheet of metal, the reflected light becomes super bright and creates glare. When this glare hits your eyes, it can blind you or cause you to blink more frequently than usual.
Polarized lenses contain a chemical filter that blocks horizontal light, so only vertical wavelengths can pass through the lens. The filter works like the vertical slats in a fence or tightly packed bars on a window and does not allow anything long or horizontal.
Polarized Sunglasses: What You Need to Know
Polarized sunglasses help reduce glare caused by light reflecting off flat surfaces, such as water or road asphalt. They also enhance contrast and allow you to see more clearly in bright conditions. Sunglasses with polarized lenses are the ultimate accessory for water sports, hiking, golfing, driving, and other outdoor activities.
Polarization is a property of electromagnetic waves (also called electromagnetic radiation), which contain the electromagnetic energy of moving electrons or magnetic fields. Light can have various orientations or polarizations; each polarized wave has its characteristic properties.
For example, the long molecules in a piece of transparent, stretchable material may be randomly oriented. Still, when the material is heated and pulled, they tend to line up in one direction. Only the light waves with the same polarization can pass through the material when this happens.
Sunglasses with polarized lenses have their polarization axis oriented vertically, meaning only horizontal light can pass through them (like glare off of water or a windshield). If you’re unsure whether your sunglasses are polarized, hold them against another polarized surface, like another pair of sunglasses or an LCD screen, and tilt them 60 to 90 degrees. If they shift to black, you have polarized sunglasses that reduce glare and UV rays.
