Photonics Dictionary

A specific type of filter designed to reduce the amount of light scattered by reflections from the edges of optical components or mounts, or from irregularities on the optical surfaces.

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...

A technique whereby the sample is illuminated by a hollow cone of light larger than the acceptance angle of the objective, so that only scattered light is seen, revealing any irregularities of the...

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties of materials, particularly in the field of spectroscopy. Unlike traditional...

A single-particle scattering technique in which an incident laser beam is tightly focused by means of lenses to yield a focal spot in the scattering material with a diameter on the order of the...

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...

Holography is a technique used to capture and reconstruct three-dimensional images using the principles of interference and diffraction of light. Unlike conventional photography, which records only...

A scattering photometer using scattered light in the solid angle 4.51+0 19° with respect to the forward direction, and an impactor with a rectangular jet. Scattered light intensities of entering...

A long-pass filter is an optical filter that allows longer wavelengths of light to pass through while blocking or attenuating shorter wavelengths. These filters are designed to transmit light with a...

Zone of laser operation in which the direct, reflected or scattered light exceeds the laser's MPE and (by ANSI standards) requires the use of protective eyewear.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive imaging technique used in medical and scientific fields to capture high-resolution, cross-sectional images of biological tissues. It provides...

An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) is a specialized instrument used in optical fiber communications to characterize and analyze the optical fibers' characteristics, including attenuation,...

When light is transmitted through matter, part of the light is scattered in random directions. A small part of the scattered light has frequencies removed from the frequency of the incident beam by...

Raman spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry and physics to study vibrational, rotational, and other low-frequency modes in a system. Named after the Indian physicist Sir C.V. Raman...

Light from a pulsed laser focused into nonsaturable absorbing fluid that generates a strongly backscattered light beam with a frequency higher than that of the incident light.

Swept-source optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in ophthalmology, to visualize and analyze the internal structures of biological tissues,...

Tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) is a powerful technique that combines Raman spectroscopy with the enhanced spatial resolution provided by a sharp metallic or dielectric tip. TERS allows...

The form taken by scattered light, as a result of the Tyndall effect.

The effect by which sufficiently small particles will scatter blue light at right angles to the incident beam. This scattered light is completely linearly polarized.