A Pockels cell, also known as an electro-optic modulator, is an optical device used to control the polarization of light by applying an electric field. It is named after the physicist Friedrich Carl Alwin Pockels, who discovered the electro-optic...

Extensive data storage in the form of bits, with the use of high-resolution photographic materials and optics, and generally...

1. Lines of the same color. 2. A term used in photoelastic stress analysis to refer to the interference fringes produced in...

The formation of microimages for microreduction. The technique is used, for example, in the production of precision reticles...

A telescope lens is a primary optical component of a telescope system that gathers and focuses light to form an image. It is...

A fiber laser is a type of laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth ions such as...

A microchannel plate (MCP) is a specialized electron multiplier device used in various applications such as particle...

Hyperspectral imaging is an advanced imaging technique that captures and processes information from across the...

Cathode radiant sensitivity refers to the ability of a photocathode to convert incident radiant energy, typically in the...

Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter...

The high-speed electrons and positrons emitted by radioactive materials.

Functional materials refer to materials that possess specific properties or functionalities that make them suitable for...

A lens blank is a piece of optical material in a raw, unfinished state, typically in the form of a disk or block, from which...

Flow chemistry, also known as continuous-flow chemistry, is a chemical manufacturing process where reactions take place in a...

A solar simulator is a device used to replicate the spectrum and intensity of sunlight in a controlled environment for...

An infrared camera, also known as a thermal imaging camera or IR camera, is a device that captures and visualizes the...

The conductivity increase exhibited by some nonmetallic materials, resulting from the free carriers generated when photon...

Birefringence of materials that is induced or altered by stress fields.

Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the...

Plasmon ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) is a technique used in thin-film deposition processes, particularly in the production...

The direct influence of light on the magnetic susceptibility of particular materials.

A Peltier cooler, also known as a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) or thermoelectric module, is a solid-state device that uses...

Quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are semiconductor...

The properties of certain materials that cause them to have relative permeabilities that exceed unity. This permeability...

An endoscope is a medical device used for visualizing and examining the interior of hollow organs, body cavities, or...

In the context of imaging, particularly digital imaging and printing, "orange peel" refers to a texture or visual distortion...

A factor of an equation of the Faraday effect, which is the rotation of the plane of light polarization by transparent...

A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or...

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an analytical technique that combines the principles of Raman spectroscopy...

Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical...

An optical table, also known as an optical bench or an optical breadboard, is a specialized platform used in optics...

Dewetting is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where a thin film or coating spontaneously undergoes a process of...

An etalon is an optical device that consists of two parallel reflecting surfaces separated by a precise and known distance....

A magnon is a quasiparticle representing a quantized spin wave in a magnetic material. In other words, it is a collective...

Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....

An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...

Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the...

A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a powerful imaging instrument used in scientific research, materials...

A Laurent polarimeter is an instrument used in optics for measuring the rotation of plane-polarized light caused by...

A threadlike inclusion within a blank of optical glass. Rarely found in quality optical materials.

Transparent glassy and or crystalline structured materials engineered from inorganic, non-metallic materials via various...

Pertaining to materials having the property of reflecting a part and transmitting a part of the incident radiation.

A flexible display refers to a type of electronic visual display that is designed to be bendable, foldable, or rollable,...

The fundamental tool of microdensitometry, the microdensitometer is an instrument used for the precise measurement of...

Pertaining to the possession of photoelectric characteristics as a result of the properties of the true crystal and not of...

Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...

A quantum dot is a nanoscale semiconductor structure, typically composed of materials like cadmium selenide or indium...

Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce...

An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...

A wave in which energy is focused near a boundary separating materials having different properties. Propagation of the wave...

A photographic process using x-ray radiation or the g-rays of radioactive materials.

Device in which the various circuit elements are fabricated in different substrate materials and then appropriately joined...

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to obtain high-resolution,...

A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of...

Exhibiting the characteristic of materials that are electrical insulators or in which an electric field can be sustained...

A technique for improving the structure density of thin-film coatings by bombarding the growing film with accelerated ions...

A coating made up of particular birefringent materials having polarizing properties. It may be used, in some cases, to...

Infrared optics refer to optical components and systems designed to manipulate and control infrared (IR) light, which lies...

Calorimetry is a branch of science that involves the measurement of heat flow in physical or chemical processes. It...

A lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a miniaturized device that integrates various laboratory functions and capabilities onto a single,...

A reagent is a substance or compound that is used in a chemical reaction to bring about a specific transformation or to...

Nanoparticle photonic resonator absorption microscopy is a microscopy technique that combines the principles of photonic...

A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of...

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties...

Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide...

Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at...

Optical elements that have been coated with one or more layers of dielectric, or metallic material. These coatings serve to...

An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...

A coating made up of many layers of material having alternating high and low refractive index. In this way, it is possible...

A method of thin-film deposition in which electrons boiled off a heated cathode are used to melt the coating material. If a...

A scintillation crystal, also known simply as a scintillator, is a material that emits light when it interacts with ionizing...

Epitaxial refers to the growth of a crystalline layer on a crystalline substrate in such a way that the orientation of the...

Popular process for silicon and polycrystalline production that consists of an alteration of the original state of a...

A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...

A method of determining the abrasion resistance of very hard materials by passing a weighted wiper blade across them in a...

A noncontact, nondestructive method of measuring defects in thin composite materials, using a xenon flashtube to generate...

Substances that exhibit the characteristics of both acids and bases and are capable of both P- and N-type conductivity.

A combination of a polarizer and an analyzer that is used to detect birefringence or rotation of the plane of polarization...

Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element that has three valence electrons with one or more that...

Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and...

A unique glass made up of nano-structured materials to create millimeter sized monolithic glass space-variant polarization...

An antireflection coating (AR coating) is a thin film or coating applied to optical surfaces, such as lenses or windows, to...

The laser damage threshold refers to the maximum level of laser intensity that a material can withstand without experiencing...

A photomultiplier tube (PMT) is a highly sensitive vacuum tube that detects and amplifies low levels of light. It is widely...

GaN (gallium nitride) distributed feedback (DFB) lasers refer to a specific type of semiconductor laser based on Gallium...

The Lorentz oscillator model is a theoretical model used in physics to describe the response of a charged particle (such as...

Laser texturing is a manufacturing process that involves using a laser beam to selectively modify the surface of a material,...

Q-switched operation, or q-switching, is a technique used in lasers to produce short and intense pulses of light. The term...

In dry etching, a method of characterizing the composition of solid materials such as metal. Atoms in the OES technique are...

A gelatinous fluid that can be used as a porous thin-film coating for optical components, including laser beam collimators,...

Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through...

In the field of optics and imaging, a mesoscope refers to an optical instrument that is designed to observe and capture...

Optical fiber that transmits a greater percentage of input light than does high-loss step-index fiber. Low-loss fiber...

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications...

Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nanolithography technique used for fabricating nanoscale patterns on a substrate. It is a...

An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...

A free-electron laser (FEL) is a type of laser that generates coherent, high-intensity electromagnetic radiation by using a...

Custom lapping and polishing services involve specialized processes used to improve the surface finish and dimensional...

A phase reflection scanner that eliminates the need for a complex translation device while maintaining a high-energy-density...

FTIR (Fourier transform infrared) spectrometer is a powerful analytical instrument used to obtain an infrared spectrum of...

Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation...

Volume Bragg gratings (VBGs) are specialized optical elements that consist of periodic variations in refractive index...

Whispering gallery mode (WGM) refers to a phenomenon in wave physics, particularly in optics, where waves, such as light or...

A spectrophotometer having a prism or, more frequently, a grating for the study and recording of infrared spectra. It...

Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal...

An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current...

Polarization refers to the orientation of oscillations in a transverse wave, such as light waves, radio waves, or other...

Luminescence is the emission of light that occurs without the involved substance undergoing a significant increase in...

A spectroscopic technique that combines the high chemical specificity of Raman scattering and signal sensitivity provided by...

Pitch for polishing mixed with other materials to give it the right viscosity so that it will follow the fine-ground lens...

Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...

Primarily the measurement of photographic sensitivity of certain materials such as photographic film. It refers to the...

A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of...

Piezoresistance is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where the electrical resistance of a material changes in...

Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the...

A method of applying antireflection coatings to optics that avoids the elevated temperatures normally used. A cold coating...

A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection...

Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically...

Laser marking is a process in which a laser beam is used to mark or engrave a surface by altering its properties or...

Sapphire crystal refers to a transparent, single-crystal form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) known as corundum. It is one of the...

Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer...

The Kerr effect, named after the physicist John Kerr who first observed it in 1875, is a nonlinear optical phenomenon where...

The transition boundary between P-type and N-type materials in a semiconductor.

In the context of materials science and semiconductor physics, doping refers to the intentional introduction of impurities...

Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...

The application of reversible writing with a laser beam on particular storage materials. In one method, an amorphous film is...

Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or...

A cylindrical lens is an optical component that has different curvatures along its two orthogonal axes, resulting in a shape...

Two-photon polymerization (TPP) is a technique used in additive manufacturing, specifically in the field of 3D printing. It...

The occurrence of very large rotations in transparent materials at weak magnetic fields as predicted in the classical...

Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...

Spectroscopy is a technique used in the study of interactions between matter and electromagnetic radiation. It involves...

Micro-robotics refers to the field of robotics that involves the design, development, and application of miniature robotic...

Topological photonics is a branch of physics and optics that explores the application of topological concepts to the...

Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric...

In optics and photolithography, a phase mask refers to a device that modifies the phase of light waves passing through it....

The region at the PN junction in a semiconductor radiation detector where the potential energies of the two materials create...

An area in which airborne particulates can be monitored and controlled so that given size particles do not exceed a...

Phase contrast microscopy is an optical microscopy technique that enhances the contrast of transparent and colorless...

The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged...

Photoelastic equipment and supplies refer to instruments and materials used in photoelasticity, a technique used to analyze...

A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...

A reticle, also known as a reticule or graticule, is a pattern or set of markings placed in the focal plane of an optical...

A high-reflectance coating consisting of alternating layers of quarter-wave film of a higher refractive index and lower...

An astronomical mirror, also known as a telescope mirror or primary mirror, is a key component of a reflecting telescope. It...

Quantum sensing refers to a class of sensing technologies that leverage principles from quantum mechanics to enhance the...

Backscatter refers to the phenomenon in which radiation or waves are scattered backward, opposite to the direction of the...

Ultrasonic refers to sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing, typically above...

An aspheric lens is a type of lens whose surface profiles deviate from the traditional spherical shape. Unlike spherical...

In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...

Microscopy is a scientific technique that involves the use of microscopes to observe and study objects that are too small to...

Dispersion refers to the phenomenon where different wavelengths (colors) of light travel at different speeds when passing...

Harmonic generation refers to a nonlinear optical process in which incoming photons interact with a material and produce new...

In photonics, a lattice refers to a periodic arrangement of optical elements or structures, often on a microscopic or...

The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a...

Fluorescence microscopy is a specialized optical imaging technique used in biology, chemistry, and materials science to...

Phase matching is a crucial concept in the field of optics, particularly in nonlinear optics and the generation of coherent...

Process of synthesizing long molecular chain materials (polymers) by reaction of many small molecules (usually thousands)...

Ion-beam sputtering (IBS) is a physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique used for depositing thin films onto substrates. It...

A furnace used to heat glass materials. It may be a small laboratory-type furnace for small-scale experiments or large...

A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...

A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...

Laser sintering is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that involves using a laser to selectively fuse...

Nonlinear polarization refers to the phenomenon where the polarization of a material responds nonlinearly to an applied...

A microscope equipped with a polarizer, an analyzer and a Bertrand lens to focus on the upper focal plane of the objective....

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects...

White, tetragonal crystals used in the production of luminous coatings.

Volumetric imaging refers to the capture, visualization, and analysis of three-dimensional (3D) information from a volume of...

A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light...

A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all...

A spectral signature, in the context of remote sensing and spectroscopy, refers to the unique pattern or characteristic...

A test used to measure the degree of fading of different colored materials, especially those involving organic dyes, which...

The term photochemical pertains to chemical processes or reactions that are initiated or influenced by the absorption of...

An intermolecular substance that serves to hold materials together. Two types are used in the optical industry: one, which...

Technique for measuring the volume bulk of materials as they move along a conveyor with an accuracy of better than 1...

Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically...

Tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) is a powerful technique that combines Raman spectroscopy with the enhanced spatial...

A substrate refers to a material or surface upon which another material or process is applied or deposited. In various...

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical...

A dichroic mirror, also known as a dichroic beamsplitter or interference filter beamsplitter, is an optical device that...

A photodetector composed of a photoconductive material that, when exposed to radiation, conducts without the aid of added...

A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....

Quantum-enhanced metrology refers to the use of quantum mechanics principles and techniques to enhance the precision and...

An instrument used to test the hardness of various materials. It measures the pressure on a standard point that is necessary...

Multispectral imaging is a technique that involves capturing and analyzing images at multiple discrete spectral bands within...

Optical cements and adhesives are specialized materials used in the assembly and bonding of optical components in optical...

Magneto-optics refers to the study and manipulation of the interaction between magnetic fields and light (electromagnetic...

A well controlled thin films technique for growing films with good crystal structure in ultra high vacuum environments at...

Selective laser melting (SLM) is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that belongs to the powder bed...

An accelerator at the Argonne National Laboratory, providing powerful x-ray beams for materials research applications.

Thin-film coatings are layers of material applied to the surface of an object or substrate, typically to modify its optical,...

Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with...

Ferroelectric materials are a type of dielectric materials that exhibit spontaneous electric polarization, meaning they...

Attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy (APAP) is an advanced technique in ultrafast spectroscopy that allows...

Carrier injection refers to the process of introducing charge carriers (either electrons or holes) into a semiconductor...

A laser crystal, also known as an active medium or gain medium, is a solid-state material used in the construction of...

A vacuum chamber is a sealed enclosure from which air and other gases are removed to create a low-pressure environment,...

The technology that deals with the interaction of organic materials with light and other forms of radiant energy whose...

Brightfield refers to a type of microscopy and imaging technique in which the specimen is illuminated with a white light...

A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and...

Reflectance spectroscopy is a technique used to analyze the reflective properties of materials across various wavelengths of...

Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...

The emission of a photon by the return of an excited carrier from the conduction band to the valence band of a semiconductor...

An optical gate typically refers to a device or system that controls the transmission of light, allowing it to pass through...

A hydrogel is a three-dimensional network of polymer chains that are hydrophilic, meaning they have a strong affinity for...

Ultraviolet reflectance refers to the ability of a material or surface to reflect UV light. Ultraviolet light is...

The total fusion and sealing of materials, or usually an enclosure, to ensure that they are airtight.

A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...

A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz...

An LED (light-emitting diode) is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...

An electromagnon is a quasiparticle excitation that combines aspects of both magnetism and electric polarization in a...

The use of atoms, molecules and molecular-scale structures to enhance existing technology and develop new materials and...

A prism is a geometric optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. It is typically a solid, transparent...

The photographic recording of an image formed by the alteration in electrical properties of the sensitive materials and...

An absorbing coating medium between fibers, used in some fused fiber optic plates to absorb unwanted light. Such coatings...

Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element with two valence electrons and one or more with six....

A diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) is a type of laser system that uses semiconductor diode lasers to pump energy into...

Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties not found in naturally occurring substances. These...

Fluorescence lifetime refers to the average time it takes for a fluorophore, a molecule that absorbs light at one wavelength...

Imaging materials that generally consist of a polyester base, a transparent electrically conductive layer and an organic...

A process that employs heat to remove polyimide plastic coatings from silica optical fibers and capillary tubing.

Light diffusion refers to the process by which light is scattered or spread out in various directions as it interacts with a...

Optical coatings are thin layers of materials applied to optical components, such as lenses, mirrors, filters, and prisms,...

Liquid marble refers to a unique form of microscale liquid encapsulation, where small droplets of liquid are coated with a...

Oleophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or resist oils. The word oleophobic comes from the...

Photocathodes are specialized materials or surfaces that exhibit the photoelectric effect, wherein the absorption of photons...

A molecular motor refers to a nano-sized device composed of organic molecules or other small-scale components that can...

Particle acceleration refers to the process by which charged particles, such as electrons or protons, gain kinetic energy...

A defect in infrared systems that appears as a dark circular area on a displayed image, caused by radiation reflecting into...

In various fields such as fluid dynamics, microfluidics, and biotechnology, a flow channel refers to a defined pathway...

The use of a reflective device, which can be fashioned from a variety of materials including gases, solids, dyes, aerosols,...

A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...

Modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) is a technique used in the fabrication of optical fibers. It is a specialized form...

The effect discovered by Faraday in 1845 whereby nonoptically active materials or substances become capable of rotating the...

Use of a laser to solder joints by melting the solder coatings on the mating components.

A transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful microscopy technique that uses a beam of electrons to create...

Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain...

Laser optics refers to a broad category of optical components and systems designed for manipulating and controlling laser...

In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit...

Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the...

The Weissenberg method, named after the German physicist Karl Weissenberg, is a technique used in x-ray crystallography for...

Anisotropy refers to the property of exhibiting different values or characteristics when measured in different directions....

A micro-ring resonator is a compact optical device that utilizes the resonant behavior of light within a small ring-shaped...

Die bonding is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics assembly, where a semiconductor die or...

A laser cavity, also known as an optical cavity or resonator, is a fundamental component of a laser system. It is a confined...

A solid-state laser is a type of laser that uses a solid gain medium (as opposed to a liquid or gas) to produce coherent...

A Nernst glower, also known simply as a Nernst lamp or Nernst filament, is a type of incandescent lamp or radiant heater...

Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...

Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free...

A manufacturing process used to construct substrates for large optical components. Used with IR materials, planform bonding...

The use of a short-duration electron beam to record high-speed events that occur in microscopic objects made of materials...

In semiconductor physics and materials science, the term "III-V materials" refers to compounds composed of elements from...

A scientific CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) camera is a type of digital camera specifically designed for...

A laser device intended for crushing urinary tract stones so they can be flushed from the body. Light is introduced via...

Glass tinted with mixed oxides of neodymium and praseodymium that, unlike most solid materials, have absorption bands that...

An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized...

The soft x-rays used in the industrial radiography of materials having too small a range of densities to produce an image...

Quantum confinement refers to the phenomenon in quantum mechanics where the motion of charge carriers, such as electrons or...

A compound lens, the dimensions and materials of which have been so chosen that the lens is appreciably free of aberrations.

The technology of manipulating light on a micro scale. In optical communications, this is usually accomplished using two or...

An optical component coated to reflect infrared radiation. Gold, silver and aluminum are typical coating materials.

Laser peening is a surface enhancement technique used to improve the mechanical properties of materials, particularly...

Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a...

Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...

Rhodamine refers to a family of fluorescent organic dyes that are widely used in various fields, including biology,...

A lightproof box used for storing photosensitive materials.

Structural color refers to coloration in materials that is not caused by pigments or dyes but is instead a result of the...

Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1...

A phonon is a quantum of vibrational energy associated with the periodic motion of atoms or molecules in a crystalline...

In the context of optical materials, the term "impurity level" refers to the presence of foreign atoms or molecules within...

An opaque projector is a device used for enlarging and projecting images from opaque objects such as printed pages,...

Circular dichroism (CD) is a spectroscopic technique used to study the structural characteristics of chiral (asymmetric)...

A YAG crystal refers to a solid-state crystal made of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), which is a synthetic crystalline...

An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an...

A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It...

Fluorescence is a type of luminescence, which is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other...

A form of shearing interferometer that contains a simple wedged (plane-parallel) glass plate with a nonzero optical path...

Filoviruses are a family of viruses that are responsible for severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers in humans and...

Anisotropic is a term used to describe a material or substance that exhibits different properties or behaviors in different...

Any testing method for materials and components that does not damage or destroy the test sample. Some of the methods used...

A room that is light-tight, permitting total darkness or illumination with a safelight when working with photosensitive...

An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) is a type of light-emitting diode (LED) technology that utilizes organic compounds to...

A sensitometer having a continuously controlled monochromator to measure spectral sensitivity and contrast of photographic...

In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....

Retroreflection is a phenomenon in optics where light is reflected back toward its source, typically in a direction nearly...

Photoluminescence is a phenomenon in which a material absorbs photons (light) at one wavelength and then re-emits photons at...

A photonic cavity, also known as an optical cavity, is a structure that confines electromagnetic radiation within a certain...

The recording of the information contained in a modulated electron beam onto photographic or silicon resin-coated materials....

A fiber splice accomplished by fixtures or materials, rather than by thermal fusion. Index matching material may be applied...

A hyperspectral imaging camera is a sophisticated imaging device capable of capturing and processing data across a wide...

A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...

A method of designing lasers whereby the laser rod is cut into elliptical discs and cooled by running water over the disc...

Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) is an advanced imaging technique that provides information about the lifetime of...

An acid used to etch the surfaces of particular materials. For glass, hydrofluoric acid is used either as a liquid or a...

Of evaporative coatings, a condition resulting when small chunks of material fly from the hot crucible onto the substrate...

Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or...

That process by which radiation spontaneously emitted by a volume of optical materials is resonantly reabsorbed within the...

The range of materials that, unlike glass, may be used in the infrared. Water-soluble salts, such as cesium iodide, and...

The total scattering attributable to the intrinsic properties of the materials through which an optical wave is propagating.

A polariscope with a half-shade device and an angular scale generally attached to the analyzer. It is used to measure the...

Method for studying absorption coefficients of low-loss materials, in which a sample is allowed to come to thermal...

Material hardness scale that is used to characterize the scratch resistance of various materials. This surface hardness...

A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...

Sputtering equipment is machinery used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....

A waveguide with a rectangular cross section that is composed entirely of dielectric materials.

Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur...

Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples....

The process of heating and slowly cooling a solid material, like glass or metal, to stabilize its thermal, electrical or...

MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...

An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is...

Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level....

Extremely small organic and inorganic systems of molecules within a substance. In general, systems are colloidal size in...

A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical...

A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light...

Coating carried out in a sealed chamber evacuated by a mechanical pump in series with an oil diffusion pump to a pressure...

An exciton is a quasiparticle that represents the bound state of an electron and a hole in a solid-state material, typically...

Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a manufacturing process that involves creating three-dimensional...

Photochromic refers to a property exhibited by certain materials, typically organic compounds or dyes, which undergo...

Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet...

A type of laser welding of thin materials using a defocused or low-power carbon dioxide laser beam. The energy is absorbed...

A crucible made of electrically resistive material through which a current is passed to heat the material inside, which then...

Birefringence is an optical property of certain materials that causes them to exhibit different refractive indices for light...

A femtosecond laser is a type of laser that emits ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of femtoseconds,...

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor...

Second-order nonlinear optical properties refer to a class of phenomena exhibited by certain materials in response to...

A bundle of filaments of optical glass or other transparent materials that transmit only light, not optical images. The...

An arc flash is a sudden release of electrical energy due to an electric arc — a continuous, high-current discharge of...

A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic...

Hydrophilic is a term used to describe substances or materials that have an affinity for water. The word hydrophilic comes...

A coating applied to a neutral density glass that is designed to reduce the amount of light evenly across the transmitted...

A synchrotron is a type of particle accelerator that uses magnetic fields to steer charged particles, typically electrons or...

Liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) is a display technology that combines liquid crystal materials with silicon-based...

A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated...

Luminescence that arises from friction and that usually occurs in crystalline materials.

Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful analytical technique that enhances the Raman scattering signal of...

A multiline laser system refers to a type of laser that is capable of emitting multiple discrete wavelengths or spectral...

A fluorescent screen refers to a phosphorescent or fluorescent-coated surface that emits visible light when exposed to other...

A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively...

Twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) is a phenomenon observed in certain organic molecules containing...

Etaloning is an optical phenomenon that occurs in imaging systems, particularly in devices such as spectrometers,...

A near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the...

A term describing an antireflection coating that may be applied to optics that cannot tolerate the high temperatures usually...

Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) is a technique that extends traditional Raman spectroscopy by incorporating...

A technique used to store wavefront information on thin polarization information-recordable materials by controlling the...

Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to...

Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...

A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....

The process of determining, with the aid of plane-polarized light, the stress distribution in materials under complex...

A filter, partially opaque to near-ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation, that may be made by exposing and processing...

An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and...

The simulation of solar radiation in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum for the analysis of extraterrestrial sunlight and...

A quantum well is a structure in quantum mechanics that confines particles, such as electrons or holes, in one spatial...

An artificial material, engineered to have a negative refractive index value, such that light or any other form of...

Superresolution refers to the enhancement or improvement of the spatial resolution beyond the conventional limits imposed by...

The name of the mixture of liquid and grinding or polishing compounds used in processing optical materials.

A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....

Optofluidics is an interdisciplinary field that combines principles from optics and fluidics to create devices and systems...

Dichroism refers to the property of certain materials to exhibit different colors or absorbance of light depending on the...

Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon that occurs when different wavelengths (colors) of light are refracted by a...

Epitaxial deposition is a process used in semiconductor manufacturing and materials science to grow a thin crystalline...

Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term...

Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...

An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular...

An excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that emits short pulses of light in the ultraviolet spectrum. The term...

Ray tracing is a rendering technique used in computer graphics to simulate the way light interacts with objects in a scene....

A beam shaper is an optical device or system designed to modify the spatial profile or intensity distribution of a laser or...

Differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, also known as Nomarski interference contrast microscopy, is an optical...

A lens is a transparent optical device that focuses or diverges light, allowing it to pass through and form an image. Lenses...

Hydrophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or do not readily interact with water. The word...

A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...

One or more thin-film layers of optical material deposited on a mirror blank/substrate in order to enhance the way that...

An atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high-resolution imaging and measurement instrument used in nanotechnology, materials...

Hyperspectral resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in the spectral information captured by a...

Optic surface cleaning liquid that may be applied to glass, crystal, dielectric and metal surfaces; however, may not be...

Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...

Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...

The term reflective is an adjective that describes the ability of a surface or material to reflect light or other forms of...

A crystal, glass, or quartz slicing and cutting machine is a specialized piece of equipment used in the manufacturing...

Electromagnetic radiation with frequencies between 300 GHz and 10 THz, and existing between regions of the electromagnetic...

Optical noise refers to undesirable fluctuations or disturbances in an optical signal that can affect the quality or...

Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the...

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are substances or compounds used to enhance the thermal conductivity between two surfaces...

A photovoltaic cell, commonly known as a solar cell, is a semiconductor device that directly converts light energy into...

A term for thermoplastic optical materials; that is, those in which the polymer chains remain linear after heating and...

A measure of the relative difference in refractive index between two optical materials. Most commonly used in fiber optics...

An instrument used to detect radioactive materials: alpha particles or helium nuclei; beta particles or free electrons; and...

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a compound made up of gallium (Ga) and nitrogen (N). It is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material...

A long-pass filter is an optical filter that allows longer wavelengths of light to pass through while blocking or...

A microcomb, short for microresonator frequency comb, is a novel photonic device that generates a precise series of evenly...

Reactive evaporation refers to a process in thin-film deposition where a material is deposited onto a substrate through...

Laser ablation is a process that involves the removal or erosion of material from a target surface using laser energy. This...

Holographic tomography is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and tomography to provide three-dimensional...

A small optical polishing machine intended for polishing the surface of a metal specimen before etching for examination...

Filtered light to which photographic or other photosensitive materials are not responsive; used to illuminate darkrooms when...

Fresnel reflection refers to the reflection of light at the interface between two different media with different refractive...

A polariton is a quasiparticle resulting from the strong coupling between photons (light particles) and certain types of...

Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the...

An infrared lens is an optical component specifically designed and optimized for transmitting, focusing, or manipulating...

A system for fabricating optical fiber, consisting of a furnace that heats the materials, a polymer coating stage, a...

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is a type of additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that uses a high-power...

Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a nonlinear optical process that occurs when two photons with the same frequency combine...