Photonics Dictionary

Designed for the function of optical wavefront analysis. Shack-Hartmann camera aberration sensors use a lens array to image the wavefront to the CCD image plane. Live feedback may be applied through...

An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular wavelength or energy level. It is a distinctive feature in the absorption...

An achromat, in the context of optics, refers to a type of lens or lens system designed to reduce chromatic aberration. Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon where different colors of light...

Adaptive optics (AO) is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effects of atmospheric distortions. The Earth's atmosphere can cause light passing through it...

Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a manufacturing process that involves creating three-dimensional objects by adding material layer by layer. This is in contrast to...

Aplanatic points refer to specific points in an optical system where certain aberrations, such as spherical aberration or coma, are minimized or eliminated. In an optical system, aberrations are...

An aplanatic surface is an optical surface that is specifically designed or shaped to minimize spherical aberration and coma. Spherical aberration is an optical aberration that occurs when light rays...

An apochromat, often referred to as an apochromatic lens or apochromatic objective, is a type of optical system designed to minimize chromatic aberration. Chromatic aberration occurs when different...

The use of a variable transmission filter at the aperture stop of a lens to modify its diffraction pattern. Reduced transmission at the center of the aperture will favor performance at high...

An aspheric mirror is an optical mirror surface that deviates from the shape of a perfect sphere, having a non-spherical surface profile. Unlike traditional spherical mirrors, which have a curved...

An astronomical telescope is a type of optical instrument designed to gather and magnify light from distant celestial objects for observation and analysis. It typically consists of two main optical...

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...

An atomic clock is a highly precise timekeeping device that uses the vibrations or oscillations of atoms as a reference for measuring time. The most common type of atomic clock uses the vibrations of...

Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples. It is particularly useful for analyzing solid and liquid samples without...

The emission of a photon by the return of an excited carrier from the conduction band to the valence band of a semiconductor along a radiative recombination path. The resulting photoluminescence...

In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed. It represents the energy difference between the valence band, which is the...

A relatively hard crystal, highly resistant to excessive energy radiation, that is frequently used for optical windows, prisms and lenses transmitting from the vacuum UV into the IR.

Beam profiling is a technique used to characterize and analyze the spatial intensity distribution of a laser beam. It involves measuring and visualizing how the optical power or intensity is...

A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all electromagnetic radiation incident upon it and emits radiation in a...

A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically between 400 and 500 nanometers. Diode lasers are compact,...

Brightfield refers to a type of microscopy and imaging technique in which the specimen is illuminated with a white light source, and the image is observed or captured against a bright background. In...

Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or transmit light over a broad range of wavelengths. These mirrors are constructed...

An optical material used in place of crown glass to produce lenses with extraordinary correction of chromatic aberrations. Its high coefficient of thermal expansion and its tendency to absorb...

A gas laser in which the energy-state transitions between vibrational and rotational states of CO2 molecules give emission at long IR, about 10 µm, wavelengths. The laser can maintain...

A high-quality, narrow-angle lens of high aperture designed for low magnification in the recording of cathode-ray tube images.

A CCD camera, or charge-coupled device camera, is a type of digital camera that utilizes a CCD image sensor to capture and record images. CCD cameras are widely used in various applications,...

A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images into electronic signals. It is a key component in digital cameras, camcorders,...

Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur (S), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te). These elements are known as...

A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital cameras, camcorders, and scientific instruments. It consists of an integrated...

Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon that occurs when different wavelengths (colors) of light are refracted by a lens or optical system, leading to a failure to focus all colors to the same...

The photographic filming of the action of x-ray images recorded on a fluorescent screen by means of large lens apertures and highly sensitive filters.

A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers arranged in a specific geometric pattern to maintain the spatial coherence of...

Cold atoms refer to atoms that have been cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically in the microkelvin (µK) to nanokelvin (nK) range, close to absolute zero (0 Kelvin or -273.15°C). At...

Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) refers to a technology used in the fabrication of integrated circuits, particularly semiconductor devices like microprocessors, memory chips, and image...

A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light or electromagnetic waves back towards their source with minimal deviation in...

The concave portion of a surface, formed on a blank, on which the disk of higher refractive glass will be fused to form a multifocal spectacle lens.

A crystal formed by covalent bonds that are generally highly directional by nature. The electric characteristics of these crystals classify them as semiconductors.

Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the UV-A and UV-B regions. The exact wavelength range considered as DUV can...

A tank with a boiling solvent at the bottom and a ring of cold piping higher up that condenses the liquid and returns it to the bottom. Objects such as lenses or small metal parts to be cleaned are...

A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format. Each element within the array is capable of detecting electromagnetic...

Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce high-quality optical surfaces and components with extremely tight tolerances. It...

Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and mirrors, from materials such as metals, plastics, and crystalline materials...

A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively transmit or reflect certain wavelengths of light while simultaneously absorbing...