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Alluxa - Optical Coatings LB 8/23
Materials, Coatings Dictionary Terms

well plate
A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...
photomultiplier tube
A photomultiplier tube (PMT) is a highly sensitive vacuum tube that detects and amplifies low levels of light. It is widely...
spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is a technique used in the study of interactions between matter and electromagnetic radiation. It involves...
die bonding
Die bonding is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics assembly, where a semiconductor die or...
mesoscope
In the field of optics and imaging, a mesoscope refers to an optical instrument that is designed to observe and capture...
three-five
Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element that has three valence electrons with one or more that...
diffuse reflectance spectroscopy
Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties...
particle acceleration
Particle acceleration refers to the process by which charged particles, such as electrons or protons, gain kinetic energy...
refractive index contrast
A measure of the relative difference in refractive index between two optical materials. Most commonly used in fiber optics...
enhanced Faraday effect
The occurrence of very large rotations in transparent materials at weak magnetic fields as predicted in the classical...
Laurent polarimeter
A Laurent polarimeter is an instrument used in optics for measuring the rotation of plane-polarized light caused by...
structural color
Structural color refers to coloration in materials that is not caused by pigments or dyes but is instead a result of the...
prism
A prism is a geometric optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. It is typically a solid, transparent...
laser active elements
Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the...
light sectioning
Technique for measuring the volume bulk of materials as they move along a conveyor with an accuracy of better than 1...
holographic tomography
Holographic tomography is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and tomography to provide three-dimensional...
optical phase distortion
Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through...
laser sintering
Laser sintering is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that involves using a laser to selectively fuse...
gallium nitride
Gallium nitride (GaN) is a compound made up of gallium (Ga) and nitrogen (N). It is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material...
gallium arsenide phosphide
Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...
attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy
Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples....
microheterogeneous systems
Extremely small organic and inorganic systems of molecules within a substance. In general, systems are colloidal size in...
photovoltaic
Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term...
bandgap
In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....
blackbody source
A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all...
Mie scattering
Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...
ultrasonic
Ultrasonic refers to sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing, typically above...
ellipsometry
Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the...
Rockwell hardness
Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation...
magnon
A magnon is a quasiparticle representing a quantized spin wave in a magnetic material. In other words, it is a collective...
Weissenberg method
The Weissenberg method, named after the German physicist Karl Weissenberg, is a technique used in x-ray crystallography for...
magneto-optics
Magneto-optics refers to the study and manipulation of the interaction between magnetic fields and light (electromagnetic...
computer polarization holography
A technique used to store wavefront information on thin polarization information-recordable materials by controlling the...
mechanical splice
A fiber splice accomplished by fixtures or materials, rather than by thermal fusion. Index matching material may be applied...
tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
A spectroscopic technique that combines the high chemical specificity of Raman scattering and signal sensitivity provided by...
intrinsic detector
A photodetector composed of a photoconductive material that, when exposed to radiation, conducts without the aid of added...
extreme ultraviolet
Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....
radiation trapping
That process by which radiation spontaneously emitted by a volume of optical materials is resonantly reabsorbed within the...
microphotonics
The technology of manipulating light on a micro scale. In optical communications, this is usually accomplished using two or...
coated optics
Optical elements that have been coated with one or more layers of dielectric, or metallic material. These coatings serve to...
GaN-based LEDs
Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric...
beam shaper
A beam shaper is an optical device or system designed to modify the spatial profile or intensity distribution of a laser or...
polarimeter
A polariscope with a half-shade device and an angular scale generally attached to the analyzer. It is used to measure the...
femtosecond laser
A femtosecond laser is a type of laser that emits ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of femtoseconds,...
nanostructured glass
A unique glass made up of nano-structured materials to create millimeter sized monolithic glass space-variant polarization...
photoluminescence
Photoluminescence is a phenomenon in which a material absorbs photons (light) at one wavelength and then re-emits photons at...
laser texturing
Laser texturing is a manufacturing process that involves using a laser beam to selectively modify the surface of a material,...
metallographic polishing machine
A small optical polishing machine intended for polishing the surface of a metal specimen before etching for examination...
optical filter
An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical...
two-six
Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element with two valence electrons and one or more with six....
Fresnel reflection
Fresnel reflection refers to the reflection of light at the interface between two different media with different refractive...
infrared camera
An infrared camera, also known as a thermal imaging camera or IR camera, is a device that captures and visualizes the...
plasmonics
Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free...
metamaterial
Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties not found in naturally occurring substances. These...
photochemical
The term photochemical pertains to chemical processes or reactions that are initiated or influenced by the absorption of...
electro-optic modulator
An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an...
backscatter
Backscatter refers to the phenomenon in which radiation or waves are scattered backward, opposite to the direction of the...
ray tracing
Ray tracing is a rendering technique used in computer graphics to simulate the way light interacts with objects in a scene....
high-density storage
Extensive data storage in the form of bits, with the use of high-resolution photographic materials and optics, and generally...
hermetic bonding
The total fusion and sealing of materials, or usually an enclosure, to ensure that they are airtight.
cylindrical lens
A cylindrical lens is an optical component that has different curvatures along its two orthogonal axes, resulting in a shape...
plasmon ion-assisted deposition
Plasmon ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) is a technique used in thin-film deposition processes, particularly in the production...
filovirus
Filoviruses are a family of viruses that are responsible for severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers in humans and...
dielectric
Exhibiting the characteristic of materials that are electrical insulators or in which an electric field can be sustained...
optical materials
Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the...
GaAlAs laser
A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...
phase conjugation
The use of a reflective device, which can be fashioned from a variety of materials including gases, solids, dyes, aerosols,...
triboluminescence
Luminescence that arises from friction and that usually occurs in crystalline materials.
image intensifier
An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized...
laser peening
Laser peening is a surface enhancement technique used to improve the mechanical properties of materials, particularly...
nondestructive testing
Any testing method for materials and components that does not damage or destroy the test sample. Some of the methods used...
annealing
The process of heating and slowly cooling a solid material, like glass or metal, to stabilize its thermal, electrical or...
astronomical mirror
An astronomical mirror, also known as a telescope mirror or primary mirror, is a key component of a reflecting telescope. It...
safelight
Filtered light to which photographic or other photosensitive materials are not responsive; used to illuminate darkrooms when...
GRIN lens
A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...
beam-addressable technology
The application of reversible writing with a laser beam on particular storage materials. In one method, an amorphous film is...
oleophobic
Oleophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or resist oils. The word oleophobic comes from the...
InGaAs photodiode
An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...
hybrid optical integrated circuit
Device in which the various circuit elements are fabricated in different substrate materials and then appropriately joined...
sapphire
Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications...
multilayer coating
A coating made up of many layers of material having alternating high and low refractive index. In this way, it is possible...
long-wave infrared
Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...
nanoLED
An LED (light-emitting diode) is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...
diamond-turned optic
Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and...
surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an analytical technique that combines the principles of Raman spectroscopy...
beta fluorography
The use of a short-duration electron beam to record high-speed events that occur in microscopic objects made of materials...
rare earth dopants
Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...
orange peel
In the context of imaging, particularly digital imaging and printing, "orange peel" refers to a texture or visual distortion...
liquid marble
Liquid marble refers to a unique form of microscale liquid encapsulation, where small droplets of liquid are coated with a...
functional material
Functional materials refer to materials that possess specific properties or functionalities that make them suitable for...
second-order nonlinear optical properties
Second-order nonlinear optical properties refer to a class of phenomena exhibited by certain materials in response to...
lab-on-a-chip
A lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a miniaturized device that integrates various laboratory functions and capabilities onto a single,...
hydrophilic
Hydrophilic is a term used to describe substances or materials that have an affinity for water. The word hydrophilic comes...
luminescence
Luminescence is the emission of light that occurs without the involved substance undergoing a significant increase in...
germanium crystal
Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...
anisotropy
Anisotropy refers to the property of exhibiting different values or characteristics when measured in different directions....
quantum confinement
Quantum confinement refers to the phenomenon in quantum mechanics where the motion of charge carriers, such as electrons or...
lattice
In photonics, a lattice refers to a periodic arrangement of optical elements or structures, often on a microscopic or...
arc flash
An arc flash is a sudden release of electrical energy due to an electric arc — a continuous, high-current discharge of...
fiber optic cable assembly
A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and...
linear positioning stage
A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...
photochromic
Photochromic refers to a property exhibited by certain materials, typically organic compounds or dyes, which undergo...
axial gradient technology
A method of designing lasers whereby the laser rod is cut into elliptical discs and cooled by running water over the disc...
infrared optical material
The range of materials that, unlike glass, may be used in the infrared. Water-soluble salts, such as cesium iodide, and...
rhodamine
Rhodamine refers to a family of fluorescent organic dyes that are widely used in various fields, including biology,...
lock-in amplifier
A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or...
whispering gallery mode
Whispering gallery mode (WGM) refers to a phenomenon in wave physics, particularly in optics, where waves, such as light or...
nanoparticle photonic resonator absorption microscopy
Nanoparticle photonic resonator absorption microscopy is a microscopy technique that combines the principles of photonic...
fluorescence
Fluorescence is a type of luminescence, which is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other...
liquid crystal on silicon
Liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) is a display technology that combines liquid crystal materials with silicon-based...
epitaxial
Epitaxial refers to the growth of a crystalline layer on a crystalline substrate in such a way that the orientation of the...
wafer
In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...
Verdet constant
A factor of an equation of the Faraday effect, which is the rotation of the plane of light polarization by transparent...
reticle
A reticle, also known as a reticule or graticule, is a pattern or set of markings placed in the focal plane of an optical...
ultraviolet reflectance
Ultraviolet reflectance refers to the ability of a material or surface to reflect UV light. Ultraviolet light is...
nonlinear optics
Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a...
plastic optics
Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to...
piezoelectric transducers and ceramic materials
Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical...
long-pass filter
A long-pass filter is an optical filter that allows longer wavelengths of light to pass through while blocking or...
brightfield
Brightfield refers to a type of microscopy and imaging technique in which the specimen is illuminated with a white light...
hyperspectral imaging
Hyperspectral imaging is an advanced imaging technique that captures and processes information from across the...
PN junction
The transition boundary between P-type and N-type materials in a semiconductor.
epitaxial deposition
Epitaxial deposition is a process used in semiconductor manufacturing and materials science to grow a thin crystalline...
microcomb
A microcomb, short for microresonator frequency comb, is a novel photonic device that generates a precise series of evenly...
laser ablation
Laser ablation is a process that involves the removal or erosion of material from a target surface using laser energy. This...
optical cements and adhesive
Optical cements and adhesives are specialized materials used in the assembly and bonding of optical components in optical...
quantum well
A quantum well is a structure in quantum mechanics that confines particles, such as electrons or holes, in one spatial...
electron-beam recording
The recording of the information contained in a modulated electron beam onto photographic or silicon resin-coated materials....
silicon carbide light-emitting diodes
Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...
synchrotron
A synchrotron is a type of particle accelerator that uses magnetic fields to steer charged particles, typically electrons or...
drawing tower
A system for fabricating optical fiber, consisting of a furnace that heats the materials, a polymer coating stage, a...
ultraviolet fiber optics
Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet...
thin-film coating
Thin-film coatings are layers of material applied to the surface of an object or substrate, typically to modify its optical,...
III-V material
In semiconductor physics and materials science, the term "III-V materials" refers to compounds composed of elements from...
phase contrast microscopy
Phase contrast microscopy is an optical microscopy technique that enhances the contrast of transparent and colorless...
detector array
A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....
isochromatic lines
1. Lines of the same color. 2. A term used in photoelastic stress analysis to refer to the interference fringes produced in...
beta radiation
The high-speed electrons and positrons emitted by radioactive materials.
custom lapping and polishing services
Custom lapping and polishing services involve specialized processes used to improve the surface finish and dimensional...
light diffusion
Light diffusion refers to the process by which light is scattered or spread out in various directions as it interacts with a...
Mohs hardness
Material hardness scale that is used to characterize the scratch resistance of various materials. This surface hardness...
organic light-emitting diode
An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) is a type of light-emitting diode (LED) technology that utilizes organic compounds to...
solar simulation
The simulation of solar radiation in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum for the analysis of extraterrestrial sunlight and...
holographic camera
A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...
optofluidics
Optofluidics is an interdisciplinary field that combines principles from optics and fluidics to create devices and systems...
dispersion
Dispersion refers to the phenomenon where different wavelengths (colors) of light travel at different speeds when passing...
attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy
Attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy (APAP) is an advanced technique in ultrafast spectroscopy that allows...
infrared reflector
An optical component coated to reflect infrared radiation. Gold, silver and aluminum are typical coating materials.
Kerr effect
The Kerr effect, named after the physicist John Kerr who first observed it in 1875, is a nonlinear optical phenomenon where...
soft coating
A term describing an antireflection coating that may be applied to optics that cannot tolerate the high temperatures usually...
differential interference contrast microscopy
Differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, also known as Nomarski interference contrast microscopy, is an optical...
guided wave
A wave in which energy is focused near a boundary separating materials having different properties. Propagation of the wave...
quantum efficiency
Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...
corrected lens
A compound lens, the dimensions and materials of which have been so chosen that the lens is appreciably free of aberrations.
narcissus
A defect in infrared systems that appears as a dark circular area on a displayed image, caused by radiation reflecting into...
grenz rays
The soft x-rays used in the industrial radiography of materials having too small a range of densities to produce an image...
Peltier cooler
A Peltier cooler, also known as a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) or thermoelectric module, is a solid-state device that uses...
multispectral imaging
Multispectral imaging is a technique that involves capturing and analyzing images at multiple discrete spectral bands within...
planform bonding
A manufacturing process used to construct substrates for large optical components. Used with IR materials, planform bonding...
photomagnetic effect
The direct influence of light on the magnetic susceptibility of particular materials.
quantum dot light-emitting diode
Quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are semiconductor...
fiber optic spectrometer
A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...
dewetting
Dewetting is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where a thin film or coating spontaneously undergoes a process of...
Murty interferometer
A form of shearing interferometer that contains a simple wedged (plane-parallel) glass plate with a nonzero optical path...
incoherent bundle
A bundle of filaments of optical glass or other transparent materials that transmit only light, not optical images. The...
interstitial absorbing coating
An absorbing coating medium between fibers, used in some fused fiber optic plates to absorb unwanted light. Such coatings...
scintillation crystal
A scintillation crystal, also known simply as a scintillator, is a material that emits light when it interacts with ionizing...
indium phosphide
Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the...
sapphire optical fiber
Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide...
carrier injection
Carrier injection refers to the process of introducing charge carriers (either electrons or holes) into a semiconductor...
infrared detector
An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...
scanning electron microscope
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a powerful imaging instrument used in scientific research, materials...
reflective
The term reflective is an adjective that describes the ability of a surface or material to reflect light or other forms of...
microbubble resonator
A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It...
diffuser
An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is...
laser annealing
Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically...
Pockels cell
A Pockels cell, also known as an electro-optic modulator, is an optical device used to control the polarization of light by...
advanced photon source
An accelerator at the Argonne National Laboratory, providing powerful x-ray beams for materials research applications.
nanoimprint lithography
Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nanolithography technique used for fabricating nanoscale patterns on a substrate. It is a...
dark box
A lightproof box used for storing photosensitive materials.
darkroom
A room that is light-tight, permitting total darkness or illumination with a safelight when working with photosensitive...
fiber optic preform
A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...
microfluidics
Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically...
ferromagnetism
The properties of certain materials that cause them to have relative permeabilities that exceed unity. This permeability...
YAG crystal
A YAG crystal refers to a solid-state crystal made of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), which is a synthetic crystalline...
carbonization
Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the...
blue diode laser
A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic...
optical noise
Optical noise refers to undesirable fluctuations or disturbances in an optical signal that can affect the quality or...
hyperspectral imaging camera
A hyperspectral imaging camera is a sophisticated imaging device capable of capturing and processing data across a wide...
spatially offset Raman spectroscopy
Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) is a technique that extends traditional Raman spectroscopy by incorporating...
opaque projector
An opaque projector is a device used for enlarging and projecting images from opaque objects such as printed pages,...
micro-ring resonator
A micro-ring resonator is a compact optical device that utilizes the resonant behavior of light within a small ring-shaped...
flash photographic density filter
A filter, partially opaque to near-ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation, that may be made by exposing and processing...
thermal interface materials
Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are substances or compounds used to enhance the thermal conductivity between two surfaces...
photonic crystals
Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...
doping
In the context of materials science and semiconductor physics, doping refers to the intentional introduction of impurities...
aspheric lens
An aspheric lens is a type of lens whose surface profiles deviate from the traditional spherical shape. Unlike spherical...
sputtering target
A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....
fluorescence lifetime
Fluorescence lifetime refers to the average time it takes for a fluorophore, a molecule that absorbs light at one wavelength...
optical gate
An optical gate typically refers to a device or system that controls the transmission of light, allowing it to pass through...
photoconductivity
The conductivity increase exhibited by some nonmetallic materials, resulting from the free carriers generated when photon...
pyrolysis
A process that employs heat to remove polyimide plastic coatings from silica optical fibers and capillary tubing.
microdensitometer
The fundamental tool of microdensitometry, the microdensitometer is an instrument used for the precise measurement of...
Nernst glower
A Nernst glower, also known simply as a Nernst lamp or Nernst filament, is a type of incandescent lamp or radiant heater...
superresolution
Superresolution refers to the enhancement or improvement of the spatial resolution beyond the conventional limits imposed by...
lens blank
A lens blank is a piece of optical material in a raw, unfinished state, typically in the form of a disk or block, from which...
absorption peak
An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular...
flow chemistry
Flow chemistry, also known as continuous-flow chemistry, is a chemical manufacturing process where reactions take place in a...
quantum-ehanced metrology
Quantum-enhanced metrology refers to the use of quantum mechanics principles and techniques to enhance the precision and...
glass-melting furnace
A furnace used to heat glass materials. It may be a small laboratory-type furnace for small-scale experiments or large...
monochromator
A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of...
corner cube
A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light...
resistance heater
A crucible made of electrically resistive material through which a current is passed to heat the material inside, which then...
etaloning
Etaloning is an optical phenomenon that occurs in imaging systems, particularly in devices such as spectrometers,...
Brillouin scattering
Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with...
exciton
An exciton is a quasiparticle that represents the bound state of an electron and a hole in a solid-state material, typically...
solid-state laser
A solid-state laser is a type of laser that uses a solid gain medium (as opposed to a liquid or gas) to produce coherent...
vacuum chamber
A vacuum chamber is a sealed enclosure from which air and other gases are removed to create a low-pressure environment,...
optical ceramics
Transparent glassy and or crystalline structured materials engineered from inorganic, non-metallic materials via various...
polymer
Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...
idiochromatic
Pertaining to the possession of photoelectric characteristics as a result of the properties of the true crystal and not of...
polymerization
Process of synthesizing long molecular chain materials (polymers) by reaction of many small molecules (usually thousands)...
optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...
slicing and cutting machines - for crystals, quartz, glass, etc.
A crystal, glass, or quartz slicing and cutting machine is a specialized piece of equipment used in the manufacturing...
diode laser
A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....
chromatic aberration
Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon that occurs when different wavelengths (colors) of light are refracted by a...
transmission electron microscope
A transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful microscopy technique that uses a beam of electrons to create...
additive manufacturing
Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a manufacturing process that involves creating three-dimensional...
modified chemical vapor deposition
Modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) is a technique used in the fabrication of optical fibers. It is a specialized form...
laser cavity
A laser cavity, also known as an optical cavity or resonator, is a fundamental component of a laser system. It is a confined...
retroreflection
Retroreflection is a phenomenon in optics where light is reflected back toward its source, typically in a direction nearly...
short wavelength infrared
Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...
optical manufacturing tools and machinery
Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...
Grittington test
A method of determining the abrasion resistance of very hard materials by passing a weighted wiper blade across them in a...
Photoelastic equipment and supplies
Photoelastic equipment and supplies refer to instruments and materials used in photoelasticity, a technique used to analyze...
optics
Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter...
depletion region
The region at the PN junction in a semiconductor radiation detector where the potential energies of the two materials create...
biophotonics
The technology that deals with the interaction of organic materials with light and other forms of radiant energy whose...
masks for evaporation/deposition
In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit...
adhesive
An intermolecular substance that serves to hold materials together. Two types are used in the optical industry: one, which...
mirror coating
One or more thin-film layers of optical material deposited on a mirror blank/substrate in order to enhance the way that...
linear plastic
A term for thermoplastic optical materials; that is, those in which the polymer chains remain linear after heating and...
transparent electrophotographic films
Imaging materials that generally consist of a polyester base, a transparent electrically conductive layer and an organic...
cord
A threadlike inclusion within a blank of optical glass. Rarely found in quality optical materials.
ion-assisted deposition
A technique for improving the structure density of thin-film coatings by bombarding the growing film with accelerated ions...
GaN distributed feedback lasers
GaN (gallium nitride) distributed feedback (DFB) lasers refer to a specific type of semiconductor laser based on Gallium...
Casimir force
The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged...
fluorescent screen
A fluorescent screen refers to a phosphorescent or fluorescent-coated surface that emits visible light when exposed to other...
harmonic generation
Harmonic generation refers to a nonlinear optical process in which incoming photons interact with a material and produce new...
reflective spectroscopy
Reflectance spectroscopy is a technique used to analyze the reflective properties of materials across various wavelengths of...
Nd:YAG laser
Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain...
infrared optic
Infrared optics refer to optical components and systems designed to manipulate and control infrared (IR) light, which lies...
fluorescence lifetime imaging
Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) is an advanced imaging technique that provides information about the lifetime of...
pitch polishing compound
Pitch for polishing mixed with other materials to give it the right viscosity so that it will follow the fine-ground lens...
laser crystal
A laser crystal, also known as an active medium or gain medium, is a solid-state material used in the construction of...
diode-pumped solid-state laser
A diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) is a type of laser system that uses semiconductor diode lasers to pump energy into...
radiography
A photographic process using x-ray radiation or the g-rays of radioactive materials.
hydrogel
A hydrogel is a three-dimensional network of polymer chains that are hydrophilic, meaning they have a strong affinity for...
volumetric imaging
Volumetric imaging refers to the capture, visualization, and analysis of three-dimensional (3D) information from a volume of...
optical coatings
Optical coatings are thin layers of materials applied to optical components, such as lenses, mirrors, filters, and prisms,...
quantum sensing
Quantum sensing refers to a class of sensing technologies that leverage principles from quantum mechanics to enhance the...
laser powder bed fusion
Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is a type of additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that uses a high-power...
nanotechnology
The use of atoms, molecules and molecular-scale structures to enhance existing technology and develop new materials and...
fused quartz and silica
Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...
microchannel plate
A microchannel plate (MCP) is a specialized electron multiplier device used in various applications such as particle...
laser optics
Laser optics refers to a broad category of optical components and systems designed for manipulating and controlling laser...
near-infrared spectrometer
A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection...
phase matching
Phase matching is a crucial concept in the field of optics, particularly in nonlinear optics and the generation of coherent...
reactive evaporation
Reactive evaporation refers to a process in thin-film deposition where a material is deposited onto a substrate through...
ion-beam sputtering
Ion-beam sputtering (IBS) is a physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique used for depositing thin films onto substrates. It...
birefringence
Birefringence is an optical property of certain materials that causes them to exhibit different refractive indices for light...
sensitometry
Primarily the measurement of photographic sensitivity of certain materials such as photographic film. It refers to the...
terahertz
Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1...
sapphire window
A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of...
molecular motor
A molecular motor refers to a nano-sized device composed of organic molecules or other small-scale components that can...
second-harmonic generation
Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a nonlinear optical process that occurs when two photons with the same frequency combine...
microphotofabrication
The formation of microimages for microreduction. The technique is used, for example, in the production of precision reticles...
band-to-band photoluminescence
The emission of a photon by the return of an excited carrier from the conduction band to the valence band of a semiconductor...
topological photonics
Topological photonics is a branch of physics and optics that explores the application of topological concepts to the...
computer-generated holographic scanner
A phase reflection scanner that eliminates the need for a complex translation device while maintaining a high-energy-density...
optical emission spectroscopy
In dry etching, a method of characterizing the composition of solid materials such as metal. Atoms in the OES technique are...
infrared light-emitting diode
An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current...
cleanroom
An area in which airborne particulates can be monitored and controlled so that given size particles do not exceed a...
fiber laser
A fiber laser is a type of laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth ions such as...
light-emitting diode
An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...
sputtering equipment
Sputtering equipment is machinery used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....
radioactivity detector
An instrument used to detect radioactive materials: alpha particles or helium nuclei; beta particles or free electrons; and...
dielectric coating
A high-reflectance coating consisting of alternating layers of quarter-wave film of a higher refractive index and lower...
two-photon polymerization
Two-photon polymerization (TPP) is a technique used in additive manufacturing, specifically in the field of 3D printing. It...
selective laser melting
Selective laser melting (SLM) is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that belongs to the powder bed...
sol-gel
A gelatinous fluid that can be used as a porous thin-film coating for optical components, including laser beam collimators,...
infrared spectrophotometer
A spectrophotometer having a prism or, more frequently, a grating for the study and recording of infrared spectra. It...
didymium glass
Glass tinted with mixed oxides of neodymium and praseodymium that, unlike most solid materials, have absorption bands that...
neutral density coating
A coating applied to a neutral density glass that is designed to reduce the amount of light evenly across the transmitted...
machine vision lens
A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated...
photoelasticity
The process of determining, with the aid of plane-polarized light, the stress distribution in materials under complex...
low-loss fiber
Optical fiber that transmits a greater percentage of input light than does high-loss step-index fiber. Low-loss fiber...
solar simulator
A solar simulator is a device used to replicate the spectrum and intensity of sunlight in a controlled environment for...
optical table
An optical table, also known as an optical bench or an optical breadboard, is a specialized platform used in optics...
polarization
Polarization refers to the orientation of oscillations in a transverse wave, such as light waves, radio waves, or other...
Lorentz oscillator model
The Lorentz oscillator model is a theoretical model used in physics to describe the response of a charged particle (such as...
phase mask
In optics and photolithography, a phase mask refers to a device that modifies the phase of light waves passing through it....
material scattering
The total scattering attributable to the intrinsic properties of the materials through which an optical wave is propagating.
lens
A lens is a transparent optical device that focuses or diverges light, allowing it to pass through and form an image. Lenses...
ferroelectric materials
Ferroelectric materials are a type of dielectric materials that exhibit spontaneous electric polarization, meaning they...
scanning electron microscopy
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to obtain high-resolution,...
hydrophobic
Hydrophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or do not readily interact with water. The word...
epitaxy
A well controlled thin films technique for growing films with good crystal structure in ultra high vacuum environments at...
FTIR spectrometer
FTIR (Fourier transform infrared) spectrometer is a powerful analytical instrument used to obtain an infrared spectrum of...
piezoelectric motion systems
Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or...
excimer laser
An excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that emits short pulses of light in the ultraviolet spectrum. The term...
laser diode module
A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...
conduction welding
A type of laser welding of thin materials using a defocused or low-power carbon dioxide laser beam. The energy is absorbed...
free-electron laser
A free-electron laser (FEL) is a type of laser that generates coherent, high-intensity electromagnetic radiation by using a...
cold coating
A method of applying antireflection coatings to optics that avoids the elevated temperatures normally used. A cold coating...
circular dichroism
Circular dichroism (CD) is a spectroscopic technique used to study the structural characteristics of chiral (asymmetric)...
negative-refraction metamaterial
An artificial material, engineered to have a negative refractive index value, such that light or any other form of...
surface-enhanced Raman scattering
Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful analytical technique that enhances the Raman scattering signal of...
spatter
Of evaporative coatings, a condition resulting when small chunks of material fly from the hot crucible onto the substrate...
hyperspectral resolution
Hyperspectral resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in the spectral information captured by a...
flow channel
In various fields such as fluid dynamics, microfluidics, and biotechnology, a flow channel refers to a defined pathway...
flexible display
A flexible display refers to a type of electronic visual display that is designed to be bendable, foldable, or rollable,...
etching liquid
An acid used to etch the surfaces of particular materials. For glass, hydrofluoric acid is used either as a liquid or a...
laser marking
Laser marking is a process in which a laser beam is used to mark or engrave a surface by altering its properties or...
broadband dielectric mirrors
Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or...
scientific CMOS camera
A scientific CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) camera is a type of digital camera specifically designed for...
slurry
The name of the mixture of liquid and grinding or polishing compounds used in processing optical materials.
3D printing
3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects...
laser reflow soldering
Use of a laser to solder joints by melting the solder coatings on the mating components.
photonic cavity
A photonic cavity, also known as an optical cavity, is a structure that confines electromagnetic radiation within a certain...
polariscope
A combination of a polarizer and an analyzer that is used to detect birefringence or rotation of the plane of polarization...
micro-optics
Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level....
mid-wave infrared
MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...
nonlinear optical materials
Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the...
laser damage threshold
The laser damage threshold refers to the maximum level of laser intensity that a material can withstand without experiencing...
reagent
A reagent is a substance or compound that is used in a chemical reaction to bring about a specific transformation or to...
graphene
Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal...
acetone
Optic surface cleaning liquid that may be applied to glass, crystal, dielectric and metal surfaces; however, may not be...
nanophotonics
Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at...
anisotropic
Anisotropic is a term used to describe a material or substance that exhibits different properties or behaviors in different...
chemical vapor deposition equipment
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor...
terahertz spectrometer
A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz...
laser lithotripter
A laser device intended for crushing urinary tract stones so they can be flushed from the body. Light is introduced via...
antireflection coating
An antireflection coating (AR coating) is a thin film or coating applied to optical surfaces, such as lenses or windows, to...
color center
A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...
amphoteric materials
Substances that exhibit the characteristics of both acids and bases and are capable of both P- and N-type conductivity.
cathode radiant sensitivity
Cathode radiant sensitivity refers to the ability of a photocathode to convert incident radiant energy, typically in the...
perovskite
The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a...
phonon
A phonon is a quantum of vibrational energy associated with the periodic motion of atoms or molecules in a crystalline...
photovoltaic cell
A photovoltaic cell, commonly known as a solar cell, is a semiconductor device that directly converts light energy into...
electrophotography
The photographic recording of an image formed by the alteration in electrical properties of the sensitive materials and...
sapphire crystal
Sapphire crystal refers to a transparent, single-crystal form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) known as corundum. It is one of the...
calorimetry
Calorimetry is a branch of science that involves the measurement of heat flow in physical or chemical processes. It...
chalcogenide
Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur...
q-switched operation
Q-switched operation, or q-switching, is a technique used in lasers to produce short and intense pulses of light. The term...
spectrosensitometer
A sensitometer having a continuously controlled monochromator to measure spectral sensitivity and contrast of photographic...
adiabatic laser colorimetry
Method for studying absorption coefficients of low-loss materials, in which a sample is allowed to come to thermal...
Czochralski technique
Popular process for silicon and polycrystalline production that consists of an alteration of the original state of a...
nanotube
A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of...
optical testing instrument
An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and...
spectral signature
A spectral signature, in the context of remote sensing and spectroscopy, refers to the unique pattern or characteristic...
near-infrared camera
A near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the...
atomic force microscope
An atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high-resolution imaging and measurement instrument used in nanotechnology, materials...
petrographic microscope
A microscope equipped with a polarizer, an analyzer and a Bertrand lens to focus on the upper focal plane of the objective....
Faraday rotation
The effect discovered by Faraday in 1845 whereby nonoptically active materials or substances become capable of rotating the...
fluorescence microscopy
Fluorescence microscopy is a specialized optical imaging technique used in biology, chemistry, and materials science to...
impurity level
In the context of optical materials, the term "impurity level" refers to the presence of foreign atoms or molecules within...
infrared lens
An infrared lens is an optical component specifically designed and optimized for transmitting, focusing, or manipulating...
evaporation coating
Coating carried out in a sealed chamber evacuated by a mechanical pump in series with an oil diffusion pump to a pressure...
slab-dielectric waveguide
A waveguide with a rectangular cross section that is composed entirely of dielectric materials.
dichroism
Dichroism refers to the property of certain materials to exhibit different colors or absorbance of light depending on the...
photodetector
A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical...
pulse video thermography
A noncontact, nondestructive method of measuring defects in thin composite materials, using a xenon flashtube to generate...
nanopositioning
Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer...
diamond turning
Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce...
stress birefringence
Birefringence of materials that is induced or altered by stress fields.
etalon
An etalon is an optical device that consists of two parallel reflecting surfaces separated by a precise and known distance....
telescope lens
A telescope lens is a primary optical component of a telescope system that gathers and focuses light to form an image. It is...
polarizing coating
A coating made up of particular birefringent materials having polarizing properties. It may be used, in some cases, to...
terahertz radiation
Electromagnetic radiation with frequencies between 300 GHz and 10 THz, and existing between regions of the electromagnetic...
dichroic mirror
A dichroic mirror, also known as a dichroic beamsplitter or interference filter beamsplitter, is an optical device that...
color aging test
A test used to measure the degree of fading of different colored materials, especially those involving organic dyes, which...
electron-beam evaporation
A method of thin-film deposition in which electrons boiled off a heated cathode are used to melt the coating material. If a...
tip-enhanced Raman scattering
Tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) is a powerful technique that combines Raman spectroscopy with the enhanced spatial...
sclerometer
An instrument used to test the hardness of various materials. It measures the pressure on a standard point that is necessary...
twisted intramolecular charge transfer
Twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) is a phenomenon observed in certain organic molecules containing...
piezoresistance
Piezoresistance is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where the electrical resistance of a material changes in...
translucent
Pertaining to materials having the property of reflecting a part and transmitting a part of the incident radiation.
edge-emitting LED
An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...
electromagnon
An electromagnon is a quasiparticle excitation that combines aspects of both magnetism and electric polarization in a...
metalens
A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light...
dichroic coating
A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively...
calcium tungstate
White, tetragonal crystals used in the production of luminous coatings.
micro-robotics
Micro-robotics refers to the field of robotics that involves the design, development, and application of miniature robotic...
polariton
A polariton is a quasiparticle resulting from the strong coupling between photons (light particles) and certain types of...
microscopy
Microscopy is a scientific technique that involves the use of microscopes to observe and study objects that are too small to...
substrate
A substrate refers to a material or surface upon which another material or process is applied or deposited. In various...
multiline laser system
A multiline laser system refers to a type of laser that is capable of emitting multiple discrete wavelengths or spectral...
quantum dots
A quantum dot is a nanoscale semiconductor structure, typically composed of materials like cadmium selenide or indium...
endoscope
An endoscope is a medical device used for visualizing and examining the interior of hollow organs, body cavities, or...

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