Photonics Dictionary: O

The image error that results from astigmatism, coma, oblique spherical aberration, lateral color and distortion.

coma, fifth order aberration with on-axis focal point variation with incident off axis ray height position

A hemispherical covering that is rotatable about a central axis. There is a slit opening along one side wide enough to allow a telescope to be directed at any vertical angle up to 90°.

Refers to the characteristic hue of the ocean according to the presence and concentration of specific minerals or substances, such as chlorophyll. Atmospheric aberrations of color must be corrected...

Off-axis paraboloid and ellipsoid mirrors are specialized optical components used in various optical systems, particularly in applications requiring precise focusing, collimation, or imaging of...

A measure of the optical path length for light traveling from the sun or other celestial source through Earth's atmosphere to sea-level relative to the optical path length traveled by light from the...

Optical artifacts refer to undesired or unintended effects that can occur in optical systems, such as microscopes, cameras, telescopes, and other optical instruments. These artifacts can distort or...

A dome-shaped structure used for some optical instruments in place of a flat window. The transparent material should be of good quality and the hemispherical surfaces should be concentric.

Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through a medium. This distortion can result from variations in the refractive...

A technique for detecting and measuring atmospheric pollution, in which an oscillating mirror directs half the incoming light to a transducer that controls amplitude and frequency, and the resulting...

The direct computation of the Fourier transform of the space variant system output of an optical processor with a single spherical lens. The one-dimensional output spectrum appears along a 45°...