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Aspect ratio
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{{Short description|Attribute of a geometric shape}} {{Other uses}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}} {{More citations needed|date=June 2023}} The '''aspect ratio''' of a [[geometry|geometric]] shape is the [[ratio]] of its sizes in different dimensions. For example, the aspect ratio of a [[rectangle]] is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side—the ratio of width to height,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/aspect-ratio |title=What is aspect ratio? |first=Margaret |last=Rouse |date=September 2005 |access-date=3 February 2013 |work=WhatIs? |publisher=TechTarget}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://e3displays.com/wide-aspect-ratio-display/ |title=Wide aspect ratio display |first=Margaret |last=Rouse |date=September 2002|access-date=18 February 2020|work=display |publisher=E3displays}}</ref> when the rectangle is oriented as a "[[landscape format|landscape]]". The aspect ratio is most often expressed as two integer numbers separated by a colon (x:y), less commonly as a simple or decimal [[Fraction (mathematics)|fraction]]. The values x and y do not represent actual widths and heights but, rather, the proportion between width and height. As an example, 8:5, 16:10, 1.6:1, {{Frac|8|5}} and 1.6 are all ways of representing the same aspect ratio. In objects of more than two dimensions, such as [[hyperrectangle]]s, the aspect ratio can still be defined as the ratio of the longest side to the shortest side. ==Applications and uses== The term is most commonly used with reference to: * Graphic / image ** [[Aspect ratio (image)|Image aspect ratio]] ** [[Display aspect ratio]] ** [[Paper size]] ** [[Standard photographic print sizes]] ** [[List of film formats|Motion picture film formats]] ** [[Standard ad size]] ** [[Pixel aspect ratio]] ** [[Photolithography]]: the aspect ratio of an etched, or deposited structure is the ratio of the height of its vertical side wall to its width. * [[HARMST]] High Aspect Ratios allow the construction of tall microstructures without slant * [[Tire code]] * [[Tire sizing]] * [[Turbocharger]] impeller sizing * [[Aspect ratio (wing)|Wing aspect ratio]] of an aircraft or bird * [[Astigmatism (optical systems)|Astigmatism]] of an [[optical lens]] * Nanorod dimensions * [[Shape factor (image analysis and microscopy)]] * [[Finite Element Analysis]] * Flag design; see [[List of aspect ratios of national flags]] ==Aspect ratios of simple shapes== ===Rectangles=== {{Main|Aspect ratio (image)}} For a rectangle, the aspect ratio denotes the ratio of the width to the height of the rectangle. A [[square]] has the smallest possible aspect ratio of 1:1. Examples: * 4:3 = 1.{{overline|3}}: Some (not all) 20th century computer monitors ([[VGA]], [[XGA]], etc.), [[standard-definition television]] * <math>\sqrt{2}:1 = 1.414...</math>: international paper sizes ([[ISO 216]]) * 3:2 = 1.5: [[135 film|35mm still camera film]], [[iPhone#Models|iPhone]] (until [[iPhone 5]]) displays * [[16:10]] = 1.6: commonly used [[widescreen]] [[computer display]]s ([[WXGA (graphics)|WXGA]]) * Φ:1 = 1.618...: [[golden ratio]], close to 16:10 * 5:3 = 1.{{overline|6}}: [[super 16 mm]], a standard [[film gauge]] in many European countries * 16:9 = 1.{{overline|7}}: [[widescreen]] TV and most laptops * 2:1 = 2: [[Domino (mathematics)|dominoes]] * 64:27 = 2.{{overline|370}}: ultra-widescreen, [[21:9 aspect ratio|21:9]] * 32:9 = 3.{{overline|5}}: super ultra-widescreen ===Ellipses=== For an ellipse, the aspect ratio denotes the ratio of the [[major axis]] to the [[minor axis]]. An ellipse with an aspect ratio of 1:1 is a circle. [[File:Elps-slr.svg|center|500px]] ==Aspect ratios of general shapes== In [[geometry]], there are several alternative definitions to aspect ratios of general [[compact set]]s in a d-dimensional space:<ref name=SmithWormald1998>{{Cite book | last1 = Smith | first1 = W. D. | last2 = Wormald | first2 = N. C. | doi = 10.1109/sfcs.1998.743449 | chapter = Geometric separator theorems and applications | title = Proceedings 39th Annual Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science (Cat. No.98CB36280) | pages = 232 | year = 1998 | isbn = 0-8186-9172-7 | s2cid = 17962961 | url = http://users.monash.edu.au/~nwormald/papers/geomsep.ps.gz }}</ref> * The diameter-width aspect ratio (DWAR) of a compact set is the ratio of its diameter to its width. A circle has the minimal DWAR which is 1. A square has a DWAR of <math>\sqrt{2}</math>. * The cube-volume aspect ratio (CVAR) of a compact set is the ''d''-th root of the ratio of the ''d''-volume of the smallest enclosing axes-parallel ''d''-cube, to the set's own ''d''-volume. A square has the minimal CVAR which is 1. A circle has a CVAR of <math>\sqrt{2}</math>. An axis-parallel rectangle of width ''W'' and height ''H'', where ''W''>''H'', has a CVAR of <math>\sqrt{W^2/WH} = \sqrt{W/H}</math>. If the dimension ''d'' is fixed, then all reasonable definitions of aspect ratio are equivalent to within constant factors. ==Notations== Aspect ratios are mathematically expressed as ''x'':''y'' (pronounced "x-to-y"). Cinematographic aspect ratios are usually denoted as a (rounded) decimal multiple of width vs unit height, while photographic and videographic aspect ratios are usually defined and denoted by whole number ratios of width to height. In [[digital image]]s there is a subtle distinction between the ''display'' aspect ratio (the image as displayed) and the [[Storage aspect ratio|''storage'' aspect ratio]] (the ratio of pixel dimensions); see [[Aspect ratio (image)#Distinctions|Distinctions]]. ==See also== * [[Axial ratio]] * [[Ratio]] * [[Equidimensionality|Equidimensional]] ratios in 3D * [[List of film formats]] * [[Squeeze mapping]] * [[Scale (ratio)]] * [[Vertical orientation]] ==References== {{Reflist}} {{Fractions and ratios}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Aspect Ratio}} [[Category:Ratios]]
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