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Photonics Dictionary

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attenuator
An attenuator is an electronic or optical device used to reduce the power or intensity of a signal without significantly affecting its waveform or other characteristics. Attenuators are commonly used...
ball lens
A ball lens is a small, spherical optical component typically made of glass or other transparent materials. It is characterized by its spherical shape, with both its front and back surfaces forming...
Brillouin scattering
Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with acoustic phonons (quantized lattice vibrations) in a material, resulting in the...
coherent communications
A fiber optic communications system that works on the principles of homodyning or heterodyning. The transmitting laser produces an optical wave that is modulated in amplitude, phase or frequency by...
data bus
A system incorporated into fiber optic data communications characterized by several spatially distributed terminals that are served with the same multiplexed signal.
dense wavelength division multiplexing
Dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) is an optical communication technique used to increase the data-carrying capacity of optical fiber networks by simultaneously transmitting multiple...
differential mode delay
Differential mode delay (DMD) is a parameter used to characterize the propagation characteristics of optical fibers, particularly in multimode fiber optic systems. It refers to the difference in...
diffraction grating
A diffraction grating is an optical component consisting of a surface with a periodic structure of equally spaced, parallel grooves or rulings. These rulings act as an array of closely spaced slits...
dispersion-shifted fiber
A dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) refers to a type of optical fiber designed to minimize the effects of chromatic dispersion, which is the phenomenon where different wavelengths of light travel at...
distributed feedback laser
A distributed feedback laser (DFB laser) is a type of semiconductor laser diode designed to emit coherent, narrow-bandwidth light with precise control over the wavelength. It achieves this through a...
edge-emitting LED
An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the semiconductor chip rather than from the surface. Edge-emitting LEDs are...
electro-optic modulator
An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an external electrical signal. Electro-optic modulation is a fundamental...
embedded laser
The term "embedded laser" typically refers to a laser device that is integrated or embedded into a larger system or structure. In this context, "embedded" implies that the laser is an integral part...
fiber -> optical fiber
Optical fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent strand or filament made of glass or plastic used for transmitting light signals over long distances with minimal loss of signal quality. It serves as a...
fiber Bragg grating
A fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is a type of optical filter that is inscribed or "written" into the core of an optical fiber. It consists of a periodic modulation of the refractive index along the length...
fiber joints
Fiber joints, also known as fiber optic splices, refer to the connection points where two optical fibers are permanently joined together to form a continuous optical transmission path. These joints...
fiber laser
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 erbium, ytterbium, or neodymium. Fiber lasers generate coherent light through...
fiber optic cable assembly
A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and other components that are assembled together to facilitate the transmission of...
fiber optic illuminators -> fiber optics
The use of thin flexible glass or plastic fibers as wave guides — or "light pipes" — to channel light from one location to another. Fiber optics is based off of the principle of total...
fiber optic transceiver
A fiber optic transceiver, often simply referred to as an "optical transceiver," is a device used in fiber optic communications to transmit and receive data over optical fibers. It integrates both a...
fiber optics
The use of thin flexible glass or plastic fibers as wave guides — or "light pipes" — to channel light from one location to another. Fiber optics is based off of the principle of total...
fiber-coupled LED
A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the purpose of efficient light transmission. In this configuration, the LED serves...
fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna
A fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna (FCPA) is a type of optoelectronic device that combines a photoconductive antenna with optical fibers for the purpose of generating or detecting terahertz...
fiberless optics -> free-space optics
Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the transmission of data using modulated beams of light through free space (air or a...
fluoride fibers
Fluoride fibers are optical fibers made from fluoride-based materials, typically fluoride glasses or crystalline fluoride compounds. These fibers are characterized by their unique optical properties,...
free-space optics
Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the transmission of data using modulated beams of light through free space (air or a...
GaAlAs laser
A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is composed of layers of gallium, aluminum, and arsenic, hence...
germanium crystal
Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor commonly used in various electronic and optical applications. Germanium crystals...
GRIN lens
A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather than having a uniform refractive index like conventional lenses. This...
indium phosphide
Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the III-V group of semiconductors, where elements from groups III and V of the...
InGaAs photodiode
An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a combination of indium (In), gallium (Ga), and arsenic (As). The term InGaAs...
isolator
In the context of electronics and optics, an isolator refers to a device that allows the transmission of signals in one direction while attenuating or blocking signals in the opposite direction. The...
Kerr soliton
A Kerr soliton refers to a specific type of soliton, a self-reinforcing wave packet, that arises in nonlinear optical systems due to the Kerr effect. The Kerr effect is the phenomenon where the...
laser
A laser, which stands for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," is a device that produces coherent and focused beams of light through the process of optical amplification based...
long-wavelength system
In fiber optic communications systems, generally one that operates between 1000 and 1700 nm.
MEL
many-element laser; maximum excess loss (MEL) — the many element laser is a laser unit that consists of N like elements of active materials for support with the mode selection of the laser output. The mode selection properties of a many element laser have been experimentally exploited with as many as 10 like elements. Maximum excess loss is the maximum power lost within a give system (typically a fiber optic communication system) including scattering, dispersion, absorption and coupling loss.
MEMS fiber optic switch
A MEMS fiber optic switch is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device designed to selectively route optical signals between multiple fiber optic channels. These switches utilize miniature...
micro-optics
Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level. These components are miniaturized optical elements that manipulate light at a...
modal bandwidth
Modal bandwidth is a crucial parameter in optical fiber communication systems, particularly in multimode fiber (MMF) systems. It quantifies the ability of a fiber optic link to transmit data at high...
modulator
A modulator is a device or component that modifies a carrier signal in order to encode information for transmission over a communication channel. The process of modulating involves varying one or...
MSM photodiode
A metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiode is a type of photodetector that consists of metal electrodes on a semiconductor material. Unlike the more common PIN photodiodes, which have a P-type and...
multimode group delay -> differential mode delay
Differential mode delay (DMD) is a parameter used to characterize the propagation characteristics of optical fibers, particularly in multimode fiber optic systems. It refers to the difference in...
multiplexing
The combination of two or more signals for transmission along a single wire, path or carrier. In most optical communication systems this is referred to as wavelength division multiplexing, in which...
nonlinear polarization
Nonlinear polarization refers to the phenomenon where the polarization of a material responds nonlinearly to an applied electric field. In linear systems, the polarization of a material is directly...
optical assembly
An optical assembly refers to a collection of optical components that are carefully arranged and aligned to perform a specific function within an optical system. These components may include lenses,...
optical channel monitor
An optical channel monitor (OCM) is a device used in optical communication systems to monitor and analyze the performance of individual channels within a wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM)...
optical fiber optic switches
Optical fiber optic switches are devices used in optical fiber communication systems to selectively route optical signals from one input fiber to one or more output fibers. They play a crucial role...
optical fiber
Optical fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent strand or filament made of glass or plastic used for transmitting light signals over long distances with minimal loss of signal quality. It serves as a...
optical gate
An optical gate typically refers to a device or system that controls the transmission of light, allowing it to pass through or be blocked in a manner analogous to an electronic gate controlling the...
optical manufacturing tools and machinery
Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the fabrication, shaping, finishing, and testing of optical components and systems....

Photonics Dictionary


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