Photonics Dictionary

An optical element having two principal axes, slow and fast, that resolve an incident polarized beam into two mutually perpendicular polarized beams. The emerging beam recombines to form a particular...

A plate of electro-optical material that serves to rotate the plane of polarization of a light beam.

A plate made of a double-refracting crystal having such a density that a phase difference of one-quarter cycle is formed between the ordinary and extraordinary elements of light passing through.

Azimuthal polarization refers to a specific polarization state of light where the electric field vector of the electromagnetic wave points along the azimuthal direction (around the propagation axis)....

A piece of glass polished flat on one side, with a pair of polished faces that form an angle close to 180° on the other side, the dividing edge running down the middle of the plate. It is used...

Birefringence is an optical property of certain materials that causes them to exhibit different refractive indices for light of different polarizations. In other words, when light passes through a...

A filter that transmits light in a series of sharp, widely spaced wavelength bands by its sandwich construction of alternating layers of polarizing films and plates cut from birefringent crystal.

The central hole running the full length of a laser capillary tube, in which electrical discharge and laser action take place. Also a similar hole in a hollow waveguide or a microchannel plate.

A chart, either printed on paper or prepared photographically on glass plates or film, that consists of 3-bar resolution test objects, sine-wave test objects for modulation transfer function...

Etaloning is an optical phenomenon that occurs in imaging systems, particularly in devices such as spectrometers, interferometers, and cameras. It is characterized by the appearance of interference...

A multiple-beam interferometer, usually consisting of two flat plates, with high reflective ability. The plates are set parallel to one another by spacers so that lightwaves may bounce back and forth...

A technique used to create an achromatic phase shift based on the principle of geometric phase. The phase shift is experienced by a light beam as a result of a cyclic change in its state of...

A semicircular, half-wave quartz plate between the polarizer and analyzer. It often is used in forming precision settings with a polariscope.

The decrease in effect in developable density on a photographic plate formed by a second exposure to radiation having a longer wavelength, usually red or infrared.

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...

Laser optics refers to a broad category of optical components and systems designed for manipulating and controlling laser light. Laser optics play a crucial role in shaping the characteristics of...

A Laurent polarimeter is an instrument used in optics for measuring the rotation of plane-polarized light caused by optically active substances. Optical rotation, also known as optical activity, is a...

A nonlinear crystal used to modulate a polarized beam of light by means of the Pockels effect. A Pockels cell is used as a voltage-controlled waveplate by means of applying a known voltage across the...

A photon-counting instrument for use in both space-borne and ground-based photometric and spectroscopic instrumentation. This style of detector is composed of opaque photocathodes for photon to...

A form of shearing interferometer that contains a simple wedged (plane-parallel) glass plate with a nonzero optical path difference to create interference between split optical wavefronts. The...

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 pair of waveguides with axes normal to the plane and that guide uniform cylindrical waves.

A term for the ring-shaped stop in a phase contrast microscope. The phase annulus limits the amount of light that reaches the phase plate from the direction of the specimen and retards the light by a...

Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical vibrations or vice versa. The piezoelectric effect is a property exhibited by...

A flat plate having its surface formed into a random pattern by abrasives. Radiation wavelengths that are longer than the scale of the pattern are specularly reflected; shorter wavelengths are...

A type of compensator for use with a microscope and consisting of a quarter-wave plate in a fixed position and a rotatable analyzer.

Device that uses a coherent reference wave to record the interference patterns produced by incident ultrasonic waves on an object.

The technique of producing spectrograms in wavelengths beyond 120 nm by the use of a diffraction grating and a Schumann plate in a vacuum environment.

A vortex phase plate is an optical device designed to impart a phase singularity, commonly referred to as a vortex or phase vortex, onto a light beam. This singularity results in a phase profile...

The series of processes used to identify and evaluate crystal structure by using crystalline solids to diffract x-rays. In the Laue method, radiation of a wide range of wavelengths is transmitted by...

A quarter- or half-wave retarder made from two plates of quartz, mica or polymer with their fast axes crossed; the difference in thickness between the two plates determines the retardance. Zero-order...