Photonics Dictionary: N

An LED (light-emitting diode) is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs are commonly used for lighting, displays, and indicators. A NanoLED is on the...

A unit of length in the metric system equal to 10-9 meters. It formerly was called a millimicron.

Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer scale. This technology enables the positioning of objects with extremely high...

A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of various materials, including carbon, boron nitride, or other compounds....

Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain medium. This type of laser emits light at a wavelength of 1064 nm in the...

A Nernst glower, also known simply as a Nernst lamp or Nernst filament, is a type of incandescent lamp or radiant heater based on the Nernst effect. It was invented by the German physicist and...

A network interface card (NIC), also known as a network adapter or LAN adapter, is a hardware component that allows computers to connect to a local area network (LAN) and communicate with other...

An instrument devised by Nichols and Hull for use in the measurement of radiation pressure. The device has two small silvered, glass mirrors that are suspended, in the way of a torsion balance, by a...

In a communications network, a point at which data are received or from which they are sent. Though the term often is used synonymously with workstation, interconnection points in a network also are...

The coupling of laser or light beams via nonlinear optical techniques such as four-wave mixing to achieve spatial variation of the electrical field of the target beam. This technique is also referred...

Used in halftone screens to change the fundamental sampled spatial frequency of the halftoned picture, as well as varying the width of the pulse-modulated dots or gratings.