Photonics Dictionary: L

A lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a miniaturized device that integrates various laboratory functions and capabilities onto a single, compact chip. Also known as microfluidic devices, lab-on-a-chip systems are...

Label-free refers to a technique or method that does not require the use of additional labels, tags, or markers to detect or identify specific components or entities. In various scientific and...

The process by which laser emission is used in measuring fluid velocity and, more specifically, the detection of air and wind velocity.The laser technique measures the amount of frequency shift...

A device used for measuring the height of clouds from a position on the ground. Measurement technique uses a vertically directed beam stably positioned such that scattered radiation may be detected...

A moving group of fluid-suspended biological species directed through separate channels by which the population is isolated. The isolated or purified group is observed by applying a laser detection...

A laser device used to establish a location or target usually for detection by an impact source e.g. missiles and guided munitions. Laser designation sources utilize a system configuration which is...

Device that operates by interaction of incident radiation with semiconductor based material in order to produce an electrical signal or by other means, to interact with calorimetric devices which...

Counter propagating beams imaged along the same path in order to detect rotation. Precise rotation is measured through variation of the interference patterns which oscillates external to the standing...

A method of analysis in which a pulsed laser beam is used to heat a particle, producing a plasma, or laser spark. As the plasma cools, optical energy characteristic of the elements in the plasma is...

A technique that uses a solid-state laser and a detector to determine an object's relative distance to the system. The laser beam is projected onto the target and then reflected onto a detector...

A system that uses a continuous-wave laser to measure the velocity of an object by focusing the laser beam on the object, perpendicular to its direction of motion. An optical grating receives...

The variation of the electronically detected signal with respect to the scaled version of the classical optical signal incident on the photomultiplier tube.

A type of fluorescence spectroscopy in which an excimer laser, a dye laser and a frequency-doubling device are used to detect polycyclic hydrocarbon atoms to a part-per-billion level.

Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is a spectroscopic technique that involves using a laser to excite molecules or atoms, leading to their emission of fluorescence light. This technique is widely used...

A set of photodiodes with no gaps between them that can sense the displacement of a spot of light anywhere on the sensing area.

A power loss caused by transverse or lateral deviation from optimum alignment of source to optical waveguide, waveguide to waveguide, or waveguide to detector.

A thin-film photoconductive cell that is sensitive to the infrared region. The photosensitive material of the cell is composed of lead selenide, and the cell is used in the detection of infrared...

Lidar, short for light detection and ranging, is a remote sensing technology that uses laser light to measure distances and generate precise, three-dimensional information about the shape and...

Electromagnetic radiation detectable by the eye, ranging in wavelength from about 400 to 750 nm. In photonic applications light can be considered to cover the nonvisible portion of the spectrum which...

LiFi, short for light fidelity, is a wireless communication technology that utilizes visible light or infrared light to transmit data. Developed as an alternative or complementary technology to...

The term for an image captured by a detector and from which a dark frame, bias frame and/or flat-field frame can be subtracted during image processing.

Technique for measuring the volume bulk of materials as they move along a conveyor with an accuracy of better than 1 percent. Based on the use of high-resolution arrays of solid-state detectors, the...

Also known as single plane illumination microscopy (SPIM), this process was designed for imaging of sensitive samples and fast biological processes in vivo. In this method, a light sheet illuminates...

Technology that relies on a highly efficient photodetector that can detect incoming light signals at one frequency and transmit outgoing signals at another, thus permitting the sending and receiving...

Line scan refers to a method of capturing images or data by scanning a single line at a time, as opposed to capturing the entire image simultaneously. This technique is commonly used in various...

A solid-state video detector consisting of a single row of light-sensitive semiconductor devices, used in linear-array cameras.

Linear receive optics typically refers to the optical components and systems used in the reception (detection) of linearly polarized light signals in various applications, such as optical...

A device used to evaluate the quality of fiber optic splices made in the field by injecting light into the cladding of the fiber and measuring the output at the other end of the splice.

In coherent optical communications systems, a laser used at the receiving end to produce a steady wave that is combined with the incoming laser signal before detection, generating a composite wave...

A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or interference. It is particularly useful in fields such as spectroscopy,...

Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main categories based on wavelength: near-infrared (NIR), mid-wave infrared...