Photonics Dictionary

A technique in photometry that uses an oxyhydrogen or oxyacetylene flame to optically excite a solution containing the sample to be analyzed.

The use of high temperatures, between 2000 and 3000 °C, to excite emission lines from a sample in spectroscopic analysis.

Any of a number of instruments that uses a flame to vaporize a solution of the chemical being analyzed so that light may be passed through the vapor. Monochromation of the transmitted light is...

A part of the spectrochemical analysis of a sample that deals with the excitation of that sample by flame analysis.

The procedure applied to flame-excited line emissions to determine spectra and wavelengths.

The study of the reflection or transmission properties of specimens as a function of wavelength after they have been excited by flame-analysis techniques.

The study of flames by means of a laser emitting blue light and a spectrometer to measure the green fluorescence created by the flame chemistry.

The emission spectrum formed by the radiation from a sample that has been evaporated by a nonluminous flame.

An arc flash is a sudden release of electrical energy due to an electric arc — a continuous, high-current discharge of electricity between conductors or from a conductor to ground. Arc flashes...

An atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) is an analytical instrument used to determine the concentration of specific chemical elements in a sample by measuring the absorption of light at...

The analysis of the atomic structure of a sample by means of a source radiation that is absorbed and emitted by the sample with lines corresponding to the number and arrangement of atoms. Generally a...

The analysis of fluorescence emitted by discrete atoms, in flames, that have absorbed radiation from an external source. It is used to study the physical and chemical processes that arise from...

A vapor-phase oxidation process for fabricating graded-index optical fibers. It differs from outside vapor phase deposition in that the preform is developed radially rather than longitudinally. An...

Chemical vapor deposition is a process of applying dopants to a glass bait by flame reactions of gaseous compounds. See also outside vapor-phase oxidation; inside vapor-phase oxidation.

The exact mathematical description of the interactions of matter and intense electromagnetic fields, such as those that occur when laser sources are used to excite flame gases for spectroscopic...

A small handheld instrument consisting of a slit and collimator that feeds light into a small direct-vision dispersing prism. The eye is placed behind the prism to observe the spectrum of a colored...

An emission spectrum is a graphical representation or a characteristic pattern of the wavelengths or frequencies of light emitted by a source, such as an atom, molecule, or celestial object. It shows...

The line from a spark or other very hot source that has greater intensity than that of a line produced by an arc or flame source. Also called an enhanced line.

E.I. duPont's trade name for a material used in the jacket of fiber optic cables. It is flame-retardant, thermally stable and resistant to oxidation, ozone and radiation.

The distortion of an object's true image as the result of abnormal atmospheric disturbances along the path traveled by the light. The atmospheric disturbances common with mirages are a result of a...

A process for the production of optical fibers. A glass bait is rotated in a traversing flame of a reaction burner. Reactants passed through the flame react with oxygen at the high temperatures to...

The hollow electrode used in emission spectroscopy to hold the material to be examined and, using an arc or spark source, to vaporize it in the flame.

A lamp that yields a nonluminous flame; used in the spectroscopic analysis of radiation emitted by a substance placed in the flame.

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of thermophotovoltaics. In a thermophotovoltaic system, thermal radiation from a heat...

A highly flame-retardant material used to jacket fiber optic cables, especially on shipboard applications.