Photonics Dictionary

The intermolecular attraction between two surfaces, as between a substrate and a coating; it is an important factor in the durability of optical thin films.

An antireflection coating (AR coating) is a thin film or coating applied to optical surfaces, such as lenses or windows, to minimize unwanted reflections and increase the transmission of light...

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 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...

A dichroic mirror, also known as a dichroic beamsplitter or interference filter beamsplitter, is an optical device that selectively reflects or transmits light based on its wavelength. Dichroic...

An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is used to create a more even or uniform illumination, reduce glare, or soften...

Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the measurement of changes in the polarization state of light reflected or...

The focal length of a lens is the distance between the lens's optical center (or principal point) and the image sensor or film when the lens is focused at infinity. In simple terms, it is the...

Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice pattern. It is the basic building block of other carbon-based materials...

A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to capture 3D holographic images of objects or scenes. Unlike conventional...

A thin-film device containing miniature optical components connected via optical waveguides on a transparent dielectric substrate, whose lenses, detectors, filters, couplers and so forth perform...

Ion-beam sputtering (IBS) is a physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique used for depositing thin films onto substrates. It involves bombarding a target material with a beam of energetic ions,...

Also called coating jig allowance. That margin on an optical component that is outside the clear aperture for use in holding the component in the optical thin-film coater tooling during the...

Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically a thin film or surface layer, with the objective of improving its...

A crystalline ferroelectric material used primarily as a substrate and an active medium for thin-film optical modulators and switches. It possesses very high electro-optic and piezoelectric...

Plasma-enriched deposition or planar magnetic sputtering that offers increased deposition rates in optical thin-film production. This technology surpasses conventional and RF sputtering.

The linear relationship between input and output optical fields for a given optical system or application that allows the use of a matrix and matrix algebra to define an optical system, or series of...

The fundamental tool of microdensitometry, the microdensitometer is an instrument used for the precise measurement of microscopic optical densities (i.e. optical absorption) by detection of faint...

One or more thin-film layers of optical material deposited on a mirror blank/substrate in order to enhance the way that substrate reflects light. For example of optical materials/optical coatings...

Transparent glassy and or crystalline structured materials engineered from inorganic, non-metallic materials via various methods that include heat or specific chemical reactions. Optical ceramics...

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical filters are used to control the spectral content of light in various...

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....

A multilayered thin-film device used to modulate transmitted light in integrated photonic circuits.

An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and characteristics of optical components, systems, and devices. These instruments play a...

A thin film or coating that forms on various finished surfaces. On optical surfaces it usually denotes aging.

A structure consisting of a thin film of liquid crystal sandwiched between light-polarizing filters that have received a surface lubricant. Depending on motion, the transducer acts as a highly...

Plasmon ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) is a technique used in thin-film deposition processes, particularly in the production of optical coatings. This method combines two key processes: plasmon...

An instrument that measures the angle at which a prism can couple laser light into an optical waveguide; used to determine the thickness and refractive index of thin films in integrated optical...

A film applied to a coated or uncoated optical surface primarily for protecting this surface from mechanical abrasion, from chemical corrosion, or from both. For example, a thin layer of silicon...

Reactive evaporation refers to a process in thin-film deposition where a material is deposited onto a substrate through evaporation, and chemical reactions take place during or after the evaporation...

Loss mechanisms that degrade the performance of all thin-film optical devices by removing radiant flux out of the specular beams.

A measurement in optical thin-film coating processes whereby the gases remaining in the vacuum chamber after coating are characterized by mass spectroscopy.

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications due to its exceptional optical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Sapphire...

A gelatinous fluid that can be used as a porous thin-film coating for optical components, including laser beam collimators, or as a protective coating for glass and crystalline materials.

A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering. Sputtering targets are typically made of metals, metal alloys, or compounds...

Thin-film coatings are layers of material applied to the surface of an object or substrate, typically to modify its optical, electrical, or mechanical properties. These coatings are composed of thin...