Photonics Dictionary: N

Nanoparticle photonic resonator absorption microscopy is a microscopy technique that combines the principles of photonic resonators and nanoparticle imaging to visualize and study biological samples...

The light emitted from tissues without the use of fluorescent dyes as markers. Because cancerous tissues and normal tissues have differing emission spectra, the native fluorescence can be used to...

A scanning probe microscope that analyzes the surface of a specimen by recording the intensity of light as it is focused through a pipette and raster scanned across the specimen at a distance less...

A measurement technique used to determine the spatial distribution profile of an electrical or optical quantity of interest which is provided by multiple scans within the near-field region of a...

A monitoring technique used to measure the oxygen saturation levels in the brains of patients, commonly in operating room and neonatal intensive care unit settings. The technique, which is based on...

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a non-invasive analytical technique that uses the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum to study the absorption of light by molecules in a sample....

When a stereo pair of images is switched so that the right eye sees the left image and the left eye the right, the stereo image perceived will be reversed in terms of relative object depth.

A telescope with a concave paraboloidal objective mirror and a small plane (diagonal) mirror that reflects rays from the primary mirror laterally outside the tube where the image is viewed with an...

A device consisting of a disc with a spiral arrangement of holes that is used to convert visible patterns into electrical patterns. Light is reflected from the subject and focused through a vertical...

Also referred to as differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy; Nomarski microscopy is a unique form of microscopy especially suited for the evaluation of surface quality and defects as well...

Direct conversion of a photon from one wavelength to a lower energy photon of another wavelength(s) due to inelastic scattering. In an optical waveguide, nonlinear scattering is usually not important...

The triangle in a chromaticity diagram joining the chromaticities of the NTSC phosphors, and containing all chromaticities which can be produced by additive mixture of their light.

That branch of spectroscopy that applies to the study of interactions between energy and atomic nuclei. The simultaneous application of a strong magnetic field and the radiation from a...

A chemical detection technique used to measure molecules that have a magnetic dipole moment. The analysis is directed to nucleuses which have a quadrupole moment which leads to an asymmetric electric...

The code used to describe the United States system of color telecasting.

A symbol used to represent the refractive index. It is commonly used with a subscript to represent the wavelength of light.

An SI prefix meaning one billionth (10-9). Nano can also be used to indicate the study of atoms, molecules and other structures and particles on the nanometer scale. Nano-optics (also referred to as...

Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nanolithography technique used for fabricating nanoscale patterns on a substrate. It is a high-resolution, high-throughput process that involves the mechanical...

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...

Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at dimensions smaller than the wavelength of light. It involves the study and...

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...

The use of atoms, molecules and molecular-scale structures to enhance existing technology and develop new materials and devices. The goal of this technology is to manipulate atomic and molecular...

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 near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The near-infrared spectrum typically extends from about 700...

A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection of light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum....

A light source, such as the sun or an incandescent lamp, that freely penetrates ordinary glass bulbs and emits in the near-ultraviolet (wavelengths ranging from about 300 to 400 nm). A mercury vapor...

An electron tube containing neon gas that uses the transmission of an electric current through the gas to ionize the neon and produce a luminous red discharge.

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 neuromorphic vision sensor is a type of imaging device designed to mimic the structure and functioning of the human visual system. Inspired by the biological principles of the human eye and brain,...

A strip or annulus of glass coated with a semitransparent material such as inconel. The coating thickness, and as a result its transmission, varies linearly as a function of distance. The neutral...

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...

A device that uses low-level visible radiation or infrared radiation to produce a visual image of a night scene. These devices may rely on the amplification of existing visible light by...

A nitrogen vacancy (NV) refers to a specific type of defect or impurity in a crystal lattice where a nitrogen atom replaces a carbon atom adjacent to a vacancy (an empty lattice site) in the diamond...

A bench with instrumentation including a collimator, a microscope, positioners and a nodal slide used to rotate a lens about its second nodal point. The nodal bench is used to determine the cardinal...

The unwanted and unpredictable fluctuations that distort a received signal and hence tend to obscure the desired message. Noise disturbances, which may be generated in the devices of a communications...

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.

An assembly of optical fibers that will not transmit coherent images or information because the relationship of the fibers on either end of the assembly is random; Noncoherent fiber bundles are...

Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the intensity of incident light. In other words, these materials produce optical...

Derivative of the half-tone screen process involving the fabrication of a binary pulse-width modulated copy of the continuous-level input using a halftone screen and spatial-filtering single...

Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a material and induces nonlinear responses. In contrast to linear optics, where...