Inactive optically, but having the capacity for resolution into forms of opposed optical activity. The term is derived from...

Any form of laser; e.g., a dye laser, having an output that can be adjusted over a wide range of wavelengths. Normally the...

An OLED display formed by creating an array of OLED pixels connected by intersecting anode and cathode conductors arranged...

Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation...

In photography, the technique of taking multiple pictures of the same subject at different exposures to compensate for...

The relationship between different wavelengths of light generated by a source, which may affect the spectral distribution of...

An emitter based on stimulated emission with amplification but insufficient feedback for oscillation to build up.

An apochromat, often referred to as an apochromatic lens or apochromatic objective, is a type of optical system designed to...

In fiber optic cable, containment of the fiber or fibers within an outer protective tube in which they can move to some...

Azimuthal polarization refers to a specific polarization state of light where the electric field vector of the...

An electron-beam tube in which the current to an output electrode is regulated by the transverse motion of the tube's...

A scintillation crystal, also known simply as a scintillator, is a material that emits light when it interacts with ionizing...

Means of correcting laser postweld shift. The correction procedure is applied to optoelectronic systems such as laser diode...

Laser surgery refers to a medical procedure in which a laser, or focused beam of light, is used as a precision tool to cut,...

Prediction based on observations of nuclear masses in the valley of stability that indicates the maximum number of electrons...

Laser-mediated gene transfer refers to a technique in molecular biology and genetic engineering that utilizes lasers to...

A device consisting of two optical systems in which two signals are simultaneously transformed to produce their spectra, and...

A statistical means of characterizing the failure of a fiber or device as related to strain or time. Results are plotted on...

Harmonic generation refers to a nonlinear optical process in which incoming photons interact with a material and produce new...

Unlike the thermocouple or bolometer, the pyroelectric infrared detector is a current source with an output proportional to...

A type of solar eclipse that occurs when the sun is at perihelion and the moon is at apogee. Because the apparent size of...

The law expressing the condition under which a crystal will reflect a beam of x-rays with the greatest amount of distinction...

An additive color mixture that appears to have no hue.

Equipment used for chemical analysis by investigation of the spectra formed and observed in chemical activity. Of particular...

A reflection hologram using multiple color lasers that integrates various graphical techniques to allow the display of...

The study of crystal growth from the molten stage utilizing a holographic system wherein interferometric techniques record...

A method of measuring distance by recording a single scene from two points of perspective. Surveying instruments can be...

1. Mounting a lens or mirror so that its optical axis is coincident with the optical or mechanical axes of other portions of...

The use of a computer to generate a series of interrelated images so that the images give the illusion of movement in space...

A molded lens is an optical lens manufactured using a molding process, typically involving the shaping of a material, such...

In optics, the process of combining two lenses having equal and opposite powers to produce a result having no power.

A highly reflective mirror that is usually flat on one surface and curved on the other, and that has silver, gold or...

A laser in which the transition involved in stimulated emission of radiation takes place between two levels of an ionized...

The first nonlinear theory in plasma physics that details the time and space evolution of plasma wave instability from a...

In image processing, the mathematical relationships that link pixel brightnesses of input images to those of output images...

A defect in an optical system that prevents rays from reaching their intended destination; it can be caused by an undersized...

A method of creating real three-dimensional models by using lasers driven by CAD software. In contrast to the normal...

Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer...

The laser output refers to the generated and emitted light produced by a laser system. This output is characterized by...

Any problem that requires retrieval of the distribution of some internal properties, such as temperature concentration,...

Blocking by means of a pitch ring, pitch button or a totally pitched block. Pitch, containing a soft filter, may be used...

The laser damage threshold refers to the maximum level of laser intensity that a material can withstand without experiencing...

The process of forming a lens to a given pattern, or of cutting a piece of glass along the line of scratch.

A light source, such as the sun or an incandescent lamp, that freely penetrates ordinary glass bulbs and emits in the...

The substrate upon which a diffraction grating will be ruled. It must be dimensionally stable, and the surface must be...

A lenticular screen having the lenticules tipped about 20° to compensate for off-normal projection.

The determination of the degree to which a manufactured component can deviate from its ideal specifications of material and...

A passive coupler that distributes signals from one or several inputs among a larger number of output waveguides arranged...

The process of determining, with the aid of plane-polarized light, the stress distribution in materials under complex...

A CCD camera, or charge-coupled device camera, is a type of digital camera that utilizes a CCD image sensor to capture and...

A laser whose output is limited to a single wavelength.

A fiber optic sensor is a device that uses optical fibers to detect and measure physical, chemical, biological, or...

An imaging device whose technology contributes three specific advantages: ability to study large solid specimens that...

With respect to crystals, having three mutually rectangular axes, only two of which are equal.

A prism invented by William Nicol in 1828 that is made of calcite, the end faces of which are ground to an angle of 68°...

A color filter that is designed to gradually increase or decrease its absorption with wavelength.

A lens or lens system used to transfer a real image from one point within an optical system to another, with or without...

The gradual decrease over time in output signal with constant input light level.

Machine vision lighting refers to the use of specific lighting techniques and equipment in the field of machine vision,...

1. In color development, the chemical that combines with certain by-products of the development procedure to form a dye. 2....

Optical design and engineering services involve the development, customization, and optimization of optical systems and...

Source of radiation defined or specified by its spectral power distribution.

Ability of a laser to resist variations in output power caused when it is slowly rotated about its optical or symmetrical...

Computation of tristimulus values by integrating or summing, over the visible wavelength region, the product of the relative...

The electrical distribution that serves to influence an electron beam in the same way that an optical lens affects a light...

An interferometer that functions by first detecting the light striking each aperture and then combining the two detector...

In a perfectly centered lens, the mechanical axis (defined by the ground outside the diameter of the lens) is made to be...

A term used to describe a convex surface having too short a radius of curvature. To correct this condition, material is cut...

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that integrates digital information, typically in the form of computer-generated...

A photographic recording of interference patterns between a plane wave and a spherical wave on a high-resolution...

An image-forming system having curved mirrors in place of transparent glass components. Mirror lenses are commonly used for...

The term quantum refers to the fundamental unit or discrete amount of a physical quantity involved in interactions at the...

1. The angular displacement of the plane of polarization of light passing through a medium. 2. The azimuthal displacement of...

A nonlinear label-free imaging technique commonly used during surgical procedures for the visualization of collagen fibers...

The internet of things (IoT) refers to a network of interconnected physical devices, vehicles, appliances, and other objects...

Also cellulose acetate film. The emulsion layer applied to the substrate of a photographic surface. The emulsion layer is...

A long-pass filter is an optical filter that allows longer wavelengths of light to pass through while blocking or...

Situation in which the observer requires fewer than three independent stimuli to make color matches. Dichromats require only...

Circular dichroism (CD) is a spectroscopic technique used to study the structural characteristics of chiral (asymmetric)...

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a compound made up of gallium (Ga) and nitrogen (N). It is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material...

Characterized by having the same center. Concentric circles differ in radius but have a common center point.

The intensity distribution seen when scanning the image of a line, in the direction perpendicular to that line.

An automatic scanning instrument that is used to study a substance's fluorescence over a wide range of wavelengths. It...

Instruments used by ophthalmologists and optometrists to study the eye. There are, for instance, the ophthalmoscope to...

Linear optics refers to the study and manipulation of light in a linear and deterministic manner, where the response of...

A plate consisting of fused optical fibers with both surfaces ground and polished, and having the entrance surface curved to...

A method for characterizing a fiber wherein an optical pulse is transmitted through the fiber, and the resulting light...

A frequency comb is a precise and regular series of equally spaced spectral lines, or frequencies, that are generated with...

Virtual reality (VR) is a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional environment or experience that can be...

An eyepiece located at the near end of the microscope tube. It often is a simple Huygens eyepiece, but compensating and...

An astronomical scanning technique for capturing images of stars without moving the sensor. To perform a drift scan, a CCD...

The light-sensitive cells on the retina of the eye that are responsible for low-resolution, peripheral vision.

Collaborative Robot (Cobot): Unlike traditional autonomous robots, which usually work by themselves, a collaborative robot...

The use of computer systems for monitoring and controlling industrial production.

A term describing lenses with both surfaces finished but not yet cut to any form.

With respect to photography, the change in the density-exposure relations, for small details of the photographic image, that...

Radioactivity formed by the bombardment of stable elements by either neutrons or high-energy, charged particles under...

Fluence is a term used in various scientific and technical disciplines to describe the amount of something per unit area....

The method of disintegrating the substance of the cathode by bombarding it with ions and depositing it on another electrode...

A method of predicting the nonlinear optical effects exhibited by different molecules without synthesizing the molecules...

The length of optical waveguide needed to attain equilibrium mode distribution for a specified excitation condition.

Backscatter refers to the phenomenon in which radiation or waves are scattered backward, opposite to the direction of the...

A short term for latent image intensification, a process much like hypersensitizing in photography, but used after exposure...

Observed phenomenon in laser pulses in which a large number of excited electrons are created and in which multiphoton...

Also referred to as differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy; Nomarski microscopy is a unique form of microscopy...

Luminescence is the emission of light that occurs without the involved substance undergoing a significant increase in...

A type of motion-picture camera in which single frames are photographed either automatically at a predetermined rate (as...

A laser that sends data from the source to the distribution node.

Essentially, a hologram of a hologram, in which the first-generation hologram is masked with a narrow slit. During image...

A spectroscope having a diffraction grating for the resolution of light of various wavelengths.

A device that serves to emit light of the same wavelength as the input light, only with an increase in intensity. It may be...

Transmittance of a solution, or internal transmittance of a transparent solid, is an exponential function of the thickness...

Tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) is a powerful technique that combines Raman spectroscopy with the enhanced spatial...

A form of roof prism used to invert an image. The prism has faces cut normal to the optical axis; therefore, the prism may...

The group of adjacent pixels on which the convolution process is carried out.

1. A device designed to convert the energy of incident radiation into another form for the determination of the presence of...

A process of isolation of various atom vapor ions by means of tuning a laser source. For example, laser enrichment is...

In display technology, an expression of resolution given by the number of pixels in both the horizontal and the vertical...

Fiber optic cable in which the arrangement of fibers within the bundle has been made random so that output light will be...

Nonimage-forming light, concentrated or diffuse, that is transmitted through the lens to the image. It is frequently the...

Photography involving the recording of events that occur too fast to be perceived by the human eye or recorded by...

A source that attempts to create the characteristics of an ideal blackbody. It consists of a cavity, generally spherical,...

Spectral domain optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...

Stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM) is a superresolution microscopy technique that enables imaging of...

An event-based image sensor, also known as a dynamic vision sensor (DVS), is a type of digital imaging device designed to...

Laser drift typically refers to a phenomenon where the frequency or wavelength of a laser source gradually changes over...

In image processing, a morphology operator in which a structuring element or probe of a particular shape is moved over the...

A sensitometer that utilizes an electronic flashtube or a photoflash lamp as both the light source and the shutter for...

A laser using a dye solution as the active medium whose resonator is formed into a ring (or a triangle or another shape) by...

Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet...

A laser device used to establish a location or target usually for detection by an impact source e.g. missiles and guided...

The higher throughput obtained with an FTIR device compared with traditional spectrometers that need slits to achieve...

The elimination of gases from the surfaces of a vacuum system by heating the surfaces when the pumping phase is occurring.

The holographic recording of a microscopic specimen whereby magnification is achieved by alteration in a wavelength or...

Any isolated wave that propagates without dispersion of energy. Specifically to photonics, an ultrashort pulse of laser...

Attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy (APAP) is an advanced technique in ultrafast spectroscopy that allows...

A form of image intensifier designed to amplify a weak fluoroscopic image. The image is received at an input phosphor...

A spectroscopic technique that combines the high chemical specificity of Raman scattering and signal sensitivity provided by...

Photoplethysmography (PPG) is a non-invasive optical technique used to detect changes in blood volume in tissues. It...

The process in which the normal rate of fluorescent emission from a substance is enhanced by virtue of the optical gain of...

Measurement of the interval during which a photodetector's signal and output current drops from 90 to 10 percent.

A lens intended for use with wavelengths shorter than about 380 nm. It must be made of quartz, calcium fluoride, lithium...

Holography is a technique used to capture and reconstruct three-dimensional images using the principles of interference and...

In image processing, a specially designed programmable computer peripheral that attaches to the host system for the purpose...

A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...

The concept of the de Broglie wavelength exploits the wave-particle duality of quantum physics by associating all matter (of...

Rate at which an image on a computer screen is redrawn (usually 50 or 60 Hz) to prevent flicker caused by the decay of the...

An optical instrument used to track and image a test vehicle (target) throughout its flight. The cinesextant frequently...

Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric...

Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce...

The study and utilization of interference phenomena, based on the wave properties of light.

A pinhole camera used to record a radioactive tracer's distribution in a subject by means of a scintillation counter or a...

An antireflection coating (AR coating) is a thin film or coating applied to optical surfaces, such as lenses or windows, to...

Metrology is the science and practice of measurement. It encompasses the theoretical and practical aspects of measurement,...

1. In astronomy, the angle measured clockwise (eastward) in a horizontal plane, usually from north (true north, Y-north,...

An array of active optical devices (modulators, laser diodes and/or detectors), each of whose electrical inputs or outputs...

Gram-positive bacteria are a group of bacteria that have a thick cell wall composed primarily of a substance called...

In image processing and elsewhere, generally an adjective to describe an assembly-line arrangement for performing a task....

Oscilloscope electronic circuit that produces an output pulse whose pulse width is determined by the time that the output...

Laser lithotripsy is a medical procedure that uses laser energy to break down or fragment stones in various parts of the...

A chemical placed in a solution that will indicate when an excess of a substance or ion has been reached by coloring the...

The property exhibited by certain birefringent crystals in which the degree with which they transmit polarized light is...

A CCD sensor that provides feedback to the motion control system for a telescope, allowing the telescope to follow a...

A telescope lens is a primary optical component of a telescope system that gathers and focuses light to form an image. It is...

Anisotropy refers to the property of exhibiting different values or characteristics when measured in different directions....

A lateral shearing interferometer is an optical device used in interferometry to measure phase differences between two beams...

A method in optical character recognition in which a mobile light beam scans the outlines of characters for subsequent...

A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively...

The optical reconstruction of image information contained in a sound field. First the diffraction pattern, formed by an...

A laser output that occurs when the cavity resonator Q is first kept very low, using rotating mirrors or saturable...

A laser whose pulses are expanded, using gratings and optical fibers, before amplification and compressed to increase beam...

Use of achromatic design; the correction of chromatic aberration; without color or hue (grey, black and white)

Crystal growth method that resembles static freeze, but that induces growth by removing the ampoule from the furnace so that...

The photographic recording of the distribution and location of radioactive substances found in a specimen. The record formed...

Structural color refers to coloration in materials that is not caused by pigments or dyes but is instead a result of the...

A beam shaper is an optical device or system designed to modify the spatial profile or intensity distribution of a laser or...

A loss of resolution or detail in a television signal caused by the size of the electron scanning beam.

A hyperspectral imaging camera is a sophisticated imaging device capable of capturing and processing data across a wide...

Spectral power distribution representing a standard source of illumination, which may be real or hypothetical.

Laser sintering is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that involves using a laser to selectively fuse...

1. Also known as near-field diffraction. The field of radiation sent through an aperture in an absorbing screen at large...

The science and technology applied to the creation of low temperatures (i.e., approaching absolute zero).

In optics, the Pockels effect refers to the phenomenon where the refractive index of a material changes in response to an...

Radiation similar in origin to spontaneous emission but determined by the presence of other radiation having the same...

Postulated by Einstein in his theory of relativity. They are waves traveling at the speed of light and exerting force on...

A reticle whose image may be moved about in a field of view.

An abundant material found in the form of quartz and agate and as one of the major constituents of sand. The silicates of...

An instrument for the detection of the energy distribution of b-particles and secondary electrons.

A gradual change in the output of a circuit or instrument over time.

Descriptive of an optical fiber having a core refractive index that decreases almost parabolically and radially outward...

A ratio expressing the difference in power between the output fibers of a coupler or splitter.

A technique of using dyes during endoscopy to improve tissue differentiation. Dyes such as methylene blue, Toluidine blue...

The photographic recording of an action by taking a series of still pictures at regular intervals throughout the action.

A point cloud is a set of data points in a three-dimensional coordinate system, where each point represents a specific...

An advanced technique that allows the detection of one molecule within a crystal or a cell through optical excitation....

An electrowetting display (EWD) is a type of electronic display technology that utilizes the principles of electrowetting to...

The property of a phosphor that determines its ability to emit light for a time after the stimulus has been extinguished....

The interferometric analysis of a complex object by utilizing the three-dimensional hologram. By causing a laser beam to...

The amplitude, polarization and phase contained in the field distribution over the aperture.

An electron-gun system is an assembly used to generate and control a focused beam of electrons. Electron guns find...

An optical scanning system found in most computer scanners that can read documents, often in many type styles, and convert...

An instrument for detecting and analyzing repetitive signals. Using a fixed time delay or "gate," the input signal...

A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used...

Remote sensing is a method of data collection and observation where information about objects, areas, or phenomena on...

A set of mirrors along a telescope's polar axis designed to redirect light to a fixed position without being affected by the...

Sapphire crystal refers to a transparent, single-crystal form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) known as corundum. It is one of the...

An optical illusion in which distant objects are lighter in tone and less distinct in outline than those closer to the...

A type of tubing used to protect optical fiber cables, consisting of a wire spiral of aluminum, galvanized steel or...

Quantitative phase imaging (QPI) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to measure and analyze the optical...

A colorimeter is a device used to measure and quantify the color characteristics of an object or a light source. It provides...

The sine of the vertex angle of the largest cone of meridional rays that can enter or leave an optical system or element,...

Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...

A high-speed, narrow-field lens consisting of two achromats spaced about the aperture stop. Its uses include portrait...

The spectroscopic analysis of optical line shapes and frequency shifts, using the technique of light beating; i.e., the...

A micro-ring resonator is a compact optical device that utilizes the resonant behavior of light within a small ring-shaped...

Spectroscopy is a technique used in the study of interactions between matter and electromagnetic radiation. It involves...

A chart on paper or glass containing a series of sets of lines at progressively smaller spacing and used to ascertain the...

Instantaneous field of view (iFOV) is a term commonly used in the context of remote sensing, imaging systems, and optical...

The use of mathematical analysis to derive solutions in the science of photogrammetry.

A distributed feedback laser (DFB laser) is a type of semiconductor laser diode designed to emit coherent, narrow-bandwidth...

In electronics, the coupling of power from stage to stage by the use of an input or output element in the cathode.

In fiber optics, the use of a detector to study the range of refractive indices achieved at various wavelengths. This...

A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical...

1. In detector technology, the long wavelength at which detector response falls to a set percentage (usually 20 or 50...

A system designed to control the output quantity of a device by returning a portion of its output signal to its input. This...

Waves that propagate along the interface between two different media without radiation with exponentially decaying...

A laser that distributes its output power among two, three or four optical fibers simultaneously.

A device with a limited number of possible output values (sometimes able to be selected) that can translate an incoming...

An antigen is any substance that is capable of triggering an immune response in an organism. Antigens are typically proteins...

A bench with instrumentation including a collimator, a microscope, positioners and a nodal slide used to rotate a lens about...

A device having a pair of decentered lenses, one for each eye, that focuses on a single object as a magnifier. It is often...

An instrument that produces an intense, tightly focused beam of ions to stimulate emissions from a minute section of a...

A camera with a very high aperture lens or mirror system for photographing x-ray fluorescent screen images, mainly to save...

Inertial fusion energy (IFE) refers to a proposed method of generating electricity by harnessing the energy released from...

A tool used in cutting circular holes around a center. Also, a laser cutter in which the beam moves in relation to the cut...

Fluorescence produced by a material that has been treated with a dilute solution of fluorescing material.

A gas laser in which the energy-state transitions between vibrational and rotational states of CO2 molecules give emission...

A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of...

In an optical waveguide, that loss attributable to macrobending. Macrobending usually causes little or no radiative loss.

An aggravated form of fog in a polished surface caused by the scattering of light. The defects causing haze are larger than...

A device embodying a microprocessor that converts an image to digital form and then further enhances the image to prepare it...

The mathematical set of equations showing the relationship between oscillating electric and magnetic fields that are...

Functional materials refer to materials that possess specific properties or functionalities that make them suitable for...

Light diffusion refers to the process by which light is scattered or spread out in various directions as it interacts with a...

Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...

One eyepiece of a set having equal distances from their mounting interface to their image plane, permitting freedom to...

A microscope to which a beamsplitter and illuminated reticle have been added to measure the radius of curvature of a...

A forerunner of the modern camera, this instrument had a focusable lens that produced a sharp image on the enclosure...

Loss mechanisms that degrade the performance of all thin-film optical devices by removing radiant flux out of the specular...

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a non-invasive analytical technique that uses the near-infrared region of the...

An interface in an optical network that permits an optical signal to pass without changing the optical signal to an...

A scintillation detector is a radiation detection device that utilizes scintillation crystals to detect and measure ionizing...

Fusion ignition refers to the point in a controlled nuclear fusion reaction where the energy released by the fusion...

Abbreviated PAI. An imaging modality with a hybrid technique based on the acoustic detection of optical absorption from...

A system that generally uses a photodetector to decode punched cards for information, or for input to a computer, by sensing...

A grating with very coarse rulings to match the long wavelengths in the far-infrared region. In the most efficient ruling...

A night-vision device that uses one or more infrared transducers to scan a scene in the 3- to 5-µm or 8- to...

A filter that transmits light in a series of sharp, widely spaced wavelength bands by its sandwich construction of...

Often referred to as the geometric center of a given image or image plane, the centroid of an image is a fixed point located...

Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or...

The unit generally used to express distances within the solar system, and sometimes to measure interstellar distances....

A spectrophotometer having a pair of identical collimators with two Glan polarizing prisms, one fixed in azimuth and the...

Beam profiling is a technique used to characterize and analyze the spatial intensity distribution of a laser beam. It...

An electromagnetic wave lying within the region of the frequency spectrum that is between about 1000 MHz (1 GHz) and 100,000...

Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and...

The formation of transistors, diodes, capacitors, resistors and other electronic elements directly on a flake of silicon by...

A computer-generated routine for achieving true-temperature readings in thermal infrared imaging systems.

An optical experiment carried out conclusively in 1887 that demonstrated that the ether, a hypothetical medium postulated by...

A high-resolution spectroscopic device commonly used in the early 20th century as a component of double-beam...

An electron-beam lithography (EBL) system is a sophisticated nanofabrication tool used in the semiconductor industry and...

In chemistry, the addition of an inert substance to reduce the concentration of a species. In colorimetry, addition of white...

A type of computer in which the electronic circuits, which process data serially, are replaced by photonic circuits capable...

A characteristic of laser output, calculated by dividing the speed of light by the linewidth of the laser beam. The temporal...

An interferometer spectrometer designed to measure thicknesses of thin films or layers by recording the interferogram and by...

A chemical solution that changes the silver salts (latent image) of exposed photographic film into black metallic silver...

High-precision motorized positioning device, often linked to computer control equipment.

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...

In computer graphics, the assignment of each pixel on a display screen to its own switch in the computer memory.

A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) is a compact and integrated device that incorporates multiple photonic components and...

A filtering device that detects what is new in a scene of interest. Often compared to that of a temporal high pass filter,...

The indistinct rainbow that may sometimes be observed outside the distinct primary bow and that has its colors in opposite...

Gram-negative bacteria are a group of bacteria that possess a cell envelope composed of a thin layer of peptidoglycan...

A ruticon is an opto-electronic device in which light going through it can be modulated by an electric field. The...

A thin layer of metal deposited on the surface of a substrate. The film may serve as a reflector, beamsplitter, neutral...

Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a nonlinear optical process that occurs when two photons with the same frequency combine...

A characterization of the throughput performance of data storage systems; the EDR is the total of data retrieved divided by...

A strip or annulus of glass coated with a semitransparent material such as inconel. The coating thickness, and as a result...

Calculation of the amount of energy extracted from a light beam regardless of its wide range resolution.

Design and engineering consulting services refer to professional services provided by specialized firms or individuals to...

An electric cell having two electrodes of unlike metals immersed in a solution that chemically affects one or both of them,...

Liquid marble refers to a unique form of microscale liquid encapsulation, where small droplets of liquid are coated with a...

Topology is a branch of mathematics that focuses on the properties of space that are preserved under continuous...

Area scan, in the context of imaging and cameras, refers to a method of capturing an entire two-dimensional image in a...

An imaging system designed to highlight small deviations in a planar reflective object such as a mirror. The system can be...

An image intensifier tube in which the photocathode and the output of the microchannel plate are proximity-focused on the...

The highest frequency at which a laser diode can be driven and still be modulated acceptably that further results in the...

A reflecting grating ruled on a concave spherical surface that not only disperses the light but focuses the spectrum. The...

In target tracking, a technique for speeding up the image processing by removing bunches of pixels that are outside the area...

In gradient index optics, a gradient profile in which the refractive index varies symmetrically about a point.

A controlled motion system that may use a telescope, camera or antenna to follow accurately a satellite, missile, vehicle or...

The outer material that surrounds and protects the buffered and unbuffered fibers in an optical cable.

The luminescence of a substance that is produced by energy within it (e.g., radioactive material).

A portion of computer memory that is used for temporary storage of frequently accessed data. Substantially increases...

The use of variations in the power supplied to a laser to change the shape of the output pulse. The technique is used in...

Process of analysis in which the analyte substance is distributed in a matrix before laser desorption. This method avoids...

A statistical analysis of facts obtained when the intensity of x-ray diffraction is calculated at different angles. In this...

A wave that is guided by the interface between two different media or by a refractive index gradient in the medium. The...

A tool used to remove the outer cladding of an optical fiber without damaging the fiber core.

A crystalline-quartz plate designed according to specifications but having its two major faces parallel.

A means of high resolution study through the application of soft and hard x-rays onto a sample surface in order to obtain...

Pixel pitch refers to the distance between the centers of two adjacent pixels on a display screen or imaging sensor. It is...

A phenomenon that causes the details in an image to appear at a spatial frequency higher than that at which the contrast...

A vacuum chamber is a sealed enclosure from which air and other gases are removed to create a low-pressure environment,...

A prism formed by dividing a Nicol prism in a plane parallel to the path of vibration of the transmitted light and taking...

Unused fiber; fiber that has been installed but reserved for future use. Carrying no light.

Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a...

An InGaAs (indium gallium arsenide) camera is a type of imaging device that utilizes InGaAs sensors to capture images in the...

An erecting prism that inverts and reverses the image. It displaces the optical axis but does not deviate it.

Usually consists of a set of filters that attenuate specific wavelengths but transmit as much visible radiation as possible.

An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current...

A package for an optical fiber or fibers that may include cladding, buffering, strength members and an outer jacket.

The manifestation of light from scatterers outside the plane of the object in coherent light systems. The output of these...

A photoelectric detector consisting of a glass tube internally coated with a low conductance material. Voltage applied along...

Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...

The relative power emitted by a source as a function of wavelength. It determines the color-rendering properties of the...

A technique in photometry that uses an oxyhydrogen or oxyacetylene flame to optically excite a solution containing the...

Two essential pieces of equipment used in connection with the microfilming process: a camera capable of producing, on film,...

A semitransparent mirror in an optical system that combines two or more output beams into a single coaxial beam.

Radiation emitted when a quantum mechanical system drops spontaneously from an excited level to a lower level. This...

A display that is formed in an X-Y manner; i.e., two inputs allow control of X2 elements.

An optical instrument consisting of an objective lens, a coherent (usually flexible) fiber bundle and an eyepiece to examine...

An automatic camera that can record reduced images of documents at a rate of up to 30,000 documents per hour by having the...

A rear or front projection screen composed of minute optical surfaces that introduce a spread to the light beam that...

Lidar, short for light detection and ranging, is a remote sensing technology that uses laser light to measure distances and...

A form of prism invented by H.W. Dove. It resembles half of a common right-angle prism in which a ray entering parallel to...

A photorefractive material used in image processing, holography and optical switching.

The limited light-gathering area of an optical system. The area is normally restricted to an edge or outer surface of an...

Medical lasers are devices that produce intense beams of light with specific characteristics and properties, which are used...

Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at...

A test similar to the Knoop hardness test, but used for fractured material. The indenter is a square-based pyramid-shaped...

An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an...

The unwanted and unpredictable fluctuations that distort a received signal and hence tend to obscure the desired message....

An alexandrite laser is a solid-state laser that utilizes a synthetic crystal made from the rare earth element alexandrite...

Abbreviated SoC. A single chip containing all the electronic circuits required for a complete, working product. SoCs are...

A device designed to convert linear change in the light state at input to log data at output.

Micro-LED (micro-light-emitting diode) refers to a technology that involves the use of very small light-emitting diodes to...

Videography refers to the process of capturing moving images and recording them in a digital format. It involves the use of...

A polarizing prism formed from calcite that is like the Nicol prism but has the two parts divided by a thin air-film and cut...

The cutting of pitch tooling surfaces by an optical technician to permit polishing compounds to flow across the surface of...

A digital camera is a device that captures and records still images or video in digital format. Unlike traditional film...

An electric arc that is formed in mercury vapor through which an electric current flows. The intensity of the illumination...

Scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (sCMOS) refers to a type of image sensor technology specifically designed...

In photonics, a lattice refers to a periodic arrangement of optical elements or structures, often on a microscopic or...

Digital holographic microscopy (DHM) is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and digital image processing...

Dispersion refers to the phenomenon where different wavelengths (colors) of light travel at different speeds when passing...

A perfect diffuser that exists only as a concept, or a white with known spectral characteristics used as a reference in...

The distribution of energy about the image of a point source in the focal plane of an optical system.

In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...

A camera designed to record at rates exceeding 50 fps. For frame rates up to about 500 fps, an ordinary pull-down mechanism...

A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...

The indistinct, less luminous portion lying immediately outside an electric arc whose spectrum often differs from that of...

An emulsion in which grains of the photosensitive material silver halide are deposited. Each grain, when exposed to light,...

Approximation of a system of thermal equilibrium formed by the distribution of the kinetic energies of electrons in a gas...

A device that utilizes avalanche multiplication of photocurrent by means of hole-electrons created by absorbed photons. When...

Spectral flow cytometry is an advanced flow cytometry technique that expands the capabilities of traditional flow cytometry...

Transparent glassy and or crystalline structured materials engineered from inorganic, non-metallic materials via various...

Also called coating jig allowance. That margin on an optical component that is outside the clear aperture for use in holding...

Technique that uses high-pass filtering to reduce the local average to zero for all regions of the picture and then applies...

A material used to jacket fiber optic cables. It is chemical- and moisture-resistant, but not fire-resistant.

Radiation having waves that are out of phase in space and/or time.

A technique that combines two or more imaging processes in order to minimize the disadvantages within each of the...

Lens testing equipment refers to a range of specialized tools and instruments used to evaluate the optical performance,...

Off-axis paraboloid and ellipsoid mirrors are specialized optical components used in various optical systems, particularly...

A detector's ability to sense an object on the opposite side of a thin but opaque barrier such as cardboard.

Polarization refers to the orientation of oscillations in a transverse wave, such as light waves, radio waves, or other...

An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) is a type of light-emitting diode (LED) technology that utilizes organic compounds to...

An experimental lens used to produce interference fringes. A positive lens is cut into halves along its center, and the...

A diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) is a type of laser system that uses semiconductor diode lasers to pump energy into...

The removal of the zero-order component of the Fourier spectrum distribution of an object with a small, opaque absorber or...

Photoimmunotherapy (PIT) is a medical treatment approach that combines elements of phototherapy and immunotherapy to target...

A receiver-transmitter device that automatically transmits a signal when the proper interrogating signal is received.

Output noise in a laser beam resulting from acoustic disturbances of mirror separation or orientation. Such disturbances may...

Van der Waals forces refer to the attractive or repulsive forces between molecules (or parts of molecules) that arise from...

An instrument used for video or computer data storage in which a laser optical head is used to write digital information...

The optical Fourier transform is a mathematical operation applied to optical signals that involves transforming a spatial...

A mass spectrometer utilizing both radial electrostatic and magnetic field analyzers to improve the focusing and increase...

A device that is designed to automatically turn electric lamps on and off in a rapidly repeating sequence. The device may...

The nondestructive analysis and recording of industrial components based on the absorption of relatively low-energy neutrons...

A device that detects radiation by utilizing the influence of light in forming an electrical signal. It may be a phototube;...

Rare-earth elements (REEs) are a group of seventeen chemical elements found in the Earth's crust, characterized by their...

A device designed to measure linear or rotary motion by detection of the movement of markings on a transparent medium past a...

An extremely short, high intensity electronic flash of light, having a duration of about 1 x 10-6 s, used in photographing...

In computer graphics, a character generator that produces alphabetical and numerical characters with some punctuation and...

In a pumped laser system, the ratio of output energy to pump energy.

A highly accurate cathode-ray tube used to display information with the utmost efficient stability and resolution. The...

In the field of optics and imaging, a mesoscope refers to an optical instrument that is designed to observe and capture...

Spectral repeatability refers to the consistency and reproducibility of spectral measurements across multiple trials or...

A phase-modulated sensor is a type of sensor that uses modulation of the phase of a signal to measure changes in a physical...

In optics, the changing of the relative curves of a lens without changing its refractive value.

A Darlington current amplifier consisting of two separate transistors, of which a phototransistor is the input device.

A measurement of the spatial resolution of a line or area array in an optical character recognition scanning device.

The production of a block by attaching the optical elements to a plate by means of individual buttons of pitch or other...

Diffuse stray light at the image plane of an optical system that results in reduced contrast and resolution.

Self-phase modulation (SPM) is a nonlinear optical phenomenon that occurs when an intense laser beam passes through a...

A small defocused Galilean telescope mounted in a hole in a door. Viewed from inside through the positive lens, a wide-angle...

In image processing, any operation that strengthens information about the edges of objects displayed. Three types of spatial...

An imaging process in which the single opening of a simple pinhole camera is replaced with many openings called,...

Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term...

A system in which a supplied signal causes the deflection of the electron beam in a cathode-ray tube, thus forming a visible...

Not spherical; an optical element having one or more surfaces that are not spherical. The spherical surface of a lens may be...

Interval between cutting off a photoconductor's signal and the fall of current output to 90 percent.

An optical channel monitor (OCM) is a device used in optical communication systems to monitor and analyze the performance of...

Calculation of gas and aerosol transmission and emission characteristics for several model atmospheres, including two model...

The optical form of the crystal fluorspar, calcium fluoride, that is utilized for its low optical dispersion, its low...

A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance, which is a phenomenon that occurs when an external force or...

A technique for detecting and measuring atmospheric pollution, in which an oscillating mirror directs half the incoming...

Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) is a technique that extends traditional Raman spectroscopy by incorporating...

Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with...

In computer imaging, a value representing opacity.

The interval between direction of signal to a light-emitting diode and attainment of 10 percent output current in the...

A center-opening shutter made up of several identical leaves that are mounted symmetrically around the optical axis of the...

In an optical system, noise created by mode-dependent optical losses and variations in the distribution of radiant power...

A Ti:sapphire laser is a type of solid-state laser that utilizes a titanium-doped sapphire crystal as the gain medium. The...

A camera equipped with angular scales in altitude and azimuth. The scale readings are imprinted on the film when an exposure...

A material consisting of very small colorless particles imbedded in a clear glass matrix. It is available in two forms:...

An otoscope is a medical device used by healthcare professionals, particularly ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists,...

Measurement of the time elapsed during the current output change from 10 to 90 percent in a photoconductor.

A device for measuring linear dimensions. The optical caliper generally consists of two circularly mounted mirrors whose...

A signal-averaging device that improves signal-to-noise ratio by comparing a sampled signal with a time-delayed form of...

Reflection losses incurred at input and output of optical elements because of the difference in refractive index between...

The term gradient-index profile refers to a specific type of refractive index distribution within an optical material. In...

Return of radiation by a surface, without change in wavelength. The reflection may be specular, from a smooth surface;...

In computer graphics, intersection of a plane with a three-dimensional object to create a sectional view.

A method of producing an essentially constant output signal from an electronic circuit despite variations in the strength of...

The degree to which the surface of a lens causes an incident ray of light to bend, or the amount of convergence or...

A photomask, also known simply as a mask or reticle, is a key component in the photolithography process used in...

A diverging lens is a type of lens that causes parallel rays of light to spread out or diverge. It is thinner in the center...

An instrument in which an image of the sun is scanned by the entrance slit of a monochromator, the exit slit simultaneously...

A sheet of thin brass, one edge of which has been accurately cut to a known and marked circular radius. It is used to check...

In the context of materials science and semiconductor physics, doping refers to the intentional introduction of impurities...

Process developed for the production of high-resolution patterns in electro- and magneto-optics. These high-generation...

The radiation-free transition that takes place within an ion, in which inner-shell vacancies in neutral atoms are filled by...

A function that quantifies the performance degradation of coherent communications systems, imaging systems and all systems...

A spectroradiometer is a device used to measure the intensity of light at different wavelengths across the electromagnetic...

The frequency domain is a concept used in signal processing and analysis to represent signals and data in terms of their...

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an analytical technique that combines the principles of Raman spectroscopy...

In optics and photonics, "phase" refers to a property of electromagnetic waves, such as light, that describes the position...

Also known as HCS, an analytical method designed to collect statistically relevant amounts of quantitative data on many...

In digital data transmission, the representation of a bit by change in amplitude of the outgoing signal. Amplitude shift...

A transmission interference microscope that produces interference patterns of a sample by using birefringent plates that...

Pixel binning, also known as pixel merging or pixel combining, is a technique used in digital imaging and camera technology....

Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon that occurs when different wavelengths (colors) of light are refracted by a...

A memory device consisting of thin disks of a magnetic substance deposited on a nonmagnetic substrate for use in a computer.

Microscopy is a scientific technique that involves the use of microscopes to observe and study objects that are too small to...

In optics, "mode beating" refers to an interference phenomenon that can occur in laser systems with multiple longitudinal...

Plates of glass containing as many heavy metal oxides as can be dissolved in the glass without causing devitrification. The...

A sequential scanning device, utilizing a revolving lens, in which the cathode-ray tube image is transformed into a circle...

A device for converting sunlight into electrical energy, consisting of a sandwich of P-type and N-type semiconducting...

Also referred to as a band-stop or band rejection filter; a notch filter is a filter that is designed to screen out a very...

A rotating mirror coupled with a distant mirror and used in a system by Foucault to compute the velocity of light. Light...

Optical character recognition (OCR) is a technology that is used to convert printed or handwritten text into...

An assembly of multiple prisms that disperses incident light into its spectral components without deviating light at the...

Hydrophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or do not readily interact with water. The word...

Intensity distribution in the image of an edge. The gradient of the edge-response curve is a measure of the image quality of...

Cold atoms refer to atoms that have been cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically in the microkelvin (µK) to...

A lamp whose output can be traced to a standard light source.

A lidar (light detection and ranging) technique used in pollution monitoring. Two light beams are emitted simultaneously,...

A CCD device in which a solid-state electron multiplying register has been added to the end of the normal serial register....

A system by which consumer products are assigned a bar code that is read by a scanner at a cash register, enabling...

Automated optical inspection (AOI) is a technology used in manufacturing processes, particularly in electronics, to...

Method of disk rotation used for optical disk drives, in which the spindle motor decreases the speed of the disk's rotation...

Also called scanning laser acoustic microscope. A device that uses high-frequency ultrasound waves to penetrate surfaces. A...

The spatial distribution of incident and collected flux contained in the analysis of reflectance, transmittance or densities.

The effect discovered by Faraday in 1845 whereby nonoptically active materials or substances become capable of rotating the...

Scalar diffraction theory is a simplified approach used to describe the propagation of electromagnetic waves, particularly...

Relative power distribution as a function of position or angle.

In optical fiber, sharp but microscopic curvatures that create local axial displacements of a few microns and spatial...

A lens derived from the Cooke triplet anastigmat, but with one of the crown elements split in two, resulting in improved...

A 3D profile sensor, also known as a 3D profiling sensor or 3D depth sensor, is a technology that is used to capture and...

An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular...

Photoresist is a light-sensitive material used in photolithography processes, particularly in the fabrication of...

A type of eyepiece, or the modification of an eyepiece, in which a small hole, without a lens, functions as the eye lens;...

A high-speed motion camera, also known as a high-speed camera or slow-motion camera, is a specialized imaging device...

An arrangement of optical fibers in a bundle whereby the geometric configuration of the input end differs from that of the...

A surface that is swept out by revolving a circle about an axis that lies in the plane of the circle but that does not...

Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) refers to a set of safety features and technologies designed to assist drivers in...

Meta-optics, also known as metasurface optics or flat optics, is a branch of optics that involves the design, fabrication,...

See inside vapor-phase oxidation; outside vapor-phase oxidation.

Positioning generally refers to the determination or identification of the location or placement of an object, person, or...

Selective laser melting (SLM) is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that belongs to the powder bed...

A photodetector composed of a photoconductive material that, when exposed to radiation, conducts without the aid of added...

A pulsed dye laser in which the excitation is provided by means of a flashlamp. Output is tunable from 335 to 850 nm, with...

The area of optics in which the wave nature of a particle is exploited to carry out very accurate interferometry and other...

A function of the intensity distribution in an image aberrated by a quadratic curvature wavefront distortion.

Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...

A three-dimensional grating designed with thin metal sheets to remain opaque to all but one specific and predetermined wave.

An image-enhancement technique in which each pixel is subjected to a mathematical operation that groups it with its nearest...

In local area networking, arrangement of the satellite nodes around a central node through which all routing of network data...

A computer architecture used in parallel processing whereby the processing elements are directed by a single, central...

Technology that relies on a highly efficient photodetector that can detect incoming light signals at one frequency and...

Radiation from the sun that is made up of a very wide range of wavelengths, from the long infrared to the short ultraviolet...

A plane mirror mounted on a polar axis that lies parallel to the plane of the mirror. When the mirror is rotated once in 48...

An electrophoretic display, often referred to as an electronic paper display or e-paper display, is a type of electronic...

A reagent is a substance or compound that is used in a chemical reaction to bring about a specific transformation or to...

A type of multiple-pass amplifier in which no optical leakage is allowed until a finite number of passes has occurred; at...

Plastic optical fiber (POF) is a type of optical fiber made from transparent plastic, typically polymethylmethacrylate...

Sputtering equipment is machinery used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....

A mechanical shutter that has had its timing escapement replaced with an electronic timing circuit. This circuit allows a...

The element in a charge-coupled device that receives the charge packets transferred from the line of sensor sites and then...

A laser radar application in which a sequence of direct measurements of target position is fed into a tracking filter to...

A mechanism or device, especially a coating with a refractive index equal to or slightly greater than that of an optical...

A 2D profile sensor is a type of sensor used in various industrial and technological applications to measure and capture...

The light emitted from tissues without the use of fluorescent dyes as markers. Because cancerous tissues and normal tissues...

An atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) is an analytical instrument used to determine the concentration of specific chemical...

Any of a number of instruments that uses a flame to vaporize a solution of the chemical being analyzed so that light may be...

Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical...

An EMCCD (electron-multiplying charge-coupled device) camera is a type of scientific camera specifically designed for...

Three-photon microscopy is an advanced imaging technique that belongs to the family of multi-photon microscopy methods. It...

Technique of projecting an illuminated target at infinity and receiving the target image after reflection from a flat mirror...

An infrared camera, also known as a thermal imaging camera or IR camera, is a device that captures and visualizes the...

Lasers based on neodymium-doped yttrium or gadolinium vanadate crystals. These include yttrium vanadate (Nd:YVO4),...

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful analytical technique that enhances the Raman scattering signal of...

Optical fiber that transmits a greater percentage of input light than does high-loss step-index fiber. Low-loss fiber...

Computer vision enables computers to interpret and make decisions based on visual data, such as images and videos. It...

A circuit whose passive components are deposited on a given substrate by sputtering or vacuum processes.

Attenuation refers to the gradual loss or reduction of intensity, force, or magnitude of a particular property as it...

A telescope similar to the customary Cassegrain telescope, but having a primary mirror that is ellipsoidal and a secondary...

The smallest angle through which light is bent by an optical element or system. In a prism, the angle of deviation is a...

A pixel, short for "picture element," is the smallest controllable element of a digital image or display. It is a...

The effect produced by electrical charges or fields alone, without interaction with magnetic influence.

A photon-counting instrument for use in both space-borne and ground-based photometric and spectroscopic instrumentation....

A device used to measure the pressure of gases and vapors, without regard to atmospheric pressure.

Birefringence is an optical property of certain materials that causes them to exhibit different refractive indices for light...

An optical instrument for forming the spectrum of a light source and recording it on a film. The dispersing medium may be a...

A form of infrared CCD that utilizes internal photoemission as a photodetection mechanism.

A device that combines electronic and optical techniques to form a monitored infrared signal between 1 and 14 µm. It...

An electric filter that is characterized by a passband of the flattest possible shape.

An array of optically distinct fibers that are fused into one strand. They are used to keep the resolution efficiency of the...

Spatial resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in an image or a spatial dataset. It is a measure of the...

Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through...

An electronic transducer, either fixed or adjustable, that reduces the amplitude of a wave without causing significant...

The partially reflective mirror at the end of the laser cavity that is the source of the beam. It controls the coupling...

The absolute luminance threshold for detection by the two eyes.

A subsurface imaging technique based upon the polarization of light reflected off an object. The polarization of reflected...

An image intensifier tube that uses a magnetic field for focusing. It yields high-quality images, but its use is limited by...

The Lorentz oscillator model is a theoretical model used in physics to describe the response of a charged particle (such as...

A device used in measuring the attenuation of multimode optical fibers. A short reference length of fiber when combined with...

1. The process of wearing down the surface of a softer material by rubbing it under pressure against the surface of a harder...

Magneto-optics refers to the study and manipulation of the interaction between magnetic fields and light (electromagnetic...

An imaging device originally created to image whole mouse brain volumes at microscopic resolution. The main component of the...

A shutter having one or more roller blinds of material with a variable slit that moves across the back of the camera when...

The ability of a device to operate without electromagnetically interfering with the operation of nearby equipment and...

A linear image sensor is a type of solid-state electronic device used to capture and convert light into electrical signals....

Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) is a therapeutic approach that utilizes the combination of light, a photosensitizer, and...

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is a type of additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that uses a high-power...

A method of designing lasers whereby the laser rod is cut into elliptical discs and cooled by running water over the disc...

An electromagnetic device used to separate isotopes of elements based on their respective masses.

The real numerical aperture (NA) of a fiber when the computed NA is not valid because of change in the glass indices during...

In the context of optics and lasers, a transverse mode refers to a specific spatial pattern of the electric field within the...

In optics, the double refraction that is produced when stress is applied to a transparent material. Plastics, which are...

An OLED display that has an integrated electronic backplane as its substrate. Active-matrix OLED displays use at least two...

Basically, a hydrogen atom with two alterations, positronium is the lightest atom in the universe and has an extremely light...

Derivative of the half-tone screen process involving the fabrication of a binary pulse-width modulated copy of the...

A type of thermoset rubber used to jacket fiber optic cables, including those used in outdoor military installations.

A quantum dot is a nanoscale semiconductor structure, typically composed of materials like cadmium selenide or indium...

An interferometric method for describing the surface shape of large coated or uncoated optical flats. The procedure uses a...

A combination 80-column computer card containing a 35-mm microfilm frame. Reference data can be punched onto the card to...

The distribution of gray-scale values in an image.

Transparencies that represent progressive steps in the amount of transmitted radiation for administering predetermined...

The use of a tightly focused beam of electrons to drill minute holes in substances. The drilling is accomplished by the...

A computer hardware unit that generates required functional information on the screen by controlling CRT beam movements or...

RGB stands for red, green, blue, which are the primary colors of light used in additive color mixing. The RGB color model is...

Information presented as a continuously variable relationship between a signal and a standard.

A spectrum that displays the distribution in mass or in mass-to-charge ratio of ionized atoms, molecules or molecular parts....

A computer-generated hologram (CGH) is a holographic image produced using computational methods and algorithms, rather than...

A fluorescent screen refers to a phosphorescent or fluorescent-coated surface that emits visible light when exposed to other...

A five-sided prism containing two reflecting surfaces at 45° to each other, and two refracting faces perpendicular to...

A spectral signature, in the context of remote sensing and spectroscopy, refers to the unique pattern or characteristic...

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot onboard. UAVs are remotely...

A transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful microscopy technique that uses a beam of electrons to create...

A form of dispersing prism, often used in monochromators, that consists of a common right-angle prism with a 30°...

In an optical waveguide, a mode whose field decays monotonically for a finite distance in the transverse direction but which...

One surface of a nonconducting plate that is coated with many minute particles of photoemissive material that are insulated...

Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the...

A tough, durable, heat- and cold-resistant optical quality plastic used in injection-molded items such as streetlight...

The angle subtended by two points or lines that are just far enough apart to be distinguished as separate. The ability of an...

A flanged or plain ring with a restricted aperture, located in an optical system at any of several points, that cuts off...

Q-switched operation, or q-switching, is a technique used in lasers to produce short and intense pulses of light. The term...

Superresolution refers to the enhancement or improvement of the spatial resolution beyond the conventional limits imposed by...

An instrument used to record the emittance or reflectance of an object by scanning with discrete spectral resolution over a...

A grating that serves to provide higher resolution and dispersion than the average grating, and still has a greater free...

Quantum confinement refers to the phenomenon in quantum mechanics where the motion of charge carriers, such as electrons or...

A biomarker, short for biological marker, refers to a measurable and quantifiable indicator of a biological condition,...

A type of receiver utilizing a local oscillator phase-locked to the incoming signal.

A term describing a type of scratch.

A surgical procedure for correcting vision by reshaping the outer surface of the cornea through the use of a laser system.

In filter terminology, that wavelength where the filter transmission increases beyond 5 percent.

A device used for coding messages and having a fiber bundle that is aligned at both ends and scrambled in the middle, potted...

The unequal angular velocities of two objects moving at equal speeds but at different distances from the observer, which are...

A system incorporated into fiber optic data communications characterized by several spatially distributed terminals that are...

Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the...

I/O stands for input/output. In computing, it refers to the communication between a computer system or program and its...

A vacuum pump in which pressure is reduced by condensing gases on surfaces cryogenically cooled to about 20 K (liquid...

Multiple scattering method used in biological analysis in which approximations yield simple, explicit solutions, at least...

A sealed, hard, magnetic disc drive used for the storage of data in a computer system.

Laws that predict the maximum power output as a function of tube diameter for a hydrogen cyanide laser of a given discharge...

A shutter consisting of a ring of interweaving blades that open outward and allow light to pass when they are pivoted at...

Computer hardware or firmware that accesses character patterns stored in read-only memory and displays them at specific...

In optics and photolithography, a phase mask refers to a device that modifies the phase of light waves passing through it....

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications...

A hologram in which the image of an object, or the object itself, is located near the hologram recording plane, for optimum...

Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...

Swept-source optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...

In optics, an octave typically refers to a range of frequencies or wavelengths that spans a factor of 2. In other words,...

A fiber optic component or system designed in such a way that it can be operated by people without specialized knowledge of...

An optical element having two principal axes, slow and fast, that resolve an incident polarized beam into two mutually...

A Peltier cooler, also known as a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) or thermoelectric module, is a solid-state device that uses...

Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is a spectroscopic technique that involves using a laser to excite molecules or atoms,...

A crystal consisting of a substance that has the ability to become electrically polarized and has strong piezoelectric...

A lamp that has mercury in a tube or bulb that has first been evacuated. The electricity travels through the vapor between...

Also known as an optical diode, an optical isolator is a device that utilizes the Faraday effect to suppress or redirect...

A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and...

The fraction of incident light power in an optical modulator that is available to the output beam.

Power modulation refers to the intentional variation of power levels in a signal, often in the context of electronic...

A function used in a convolution filtering operation. The image to be filtered is convolved with the filtering kernel to...

Decrease in cosmic ray activity that is observed approximately 24 hours after a solar flare, attributed to a shielding...

Any optical device that utilizes diffraction in an image-forming capability. Familiar diffractive lenses are zone plates,...

The numerical definition of the ability of an observer to perceive fine detail. The average value may be taken as one...

A mass-relieving method whereby material is removed through the sides of a reflector in a direction parallel to the surface....

An astronomical telescope is a type of optical instrument designed to gather and magnify light from distant celestial...

In a linear stage, any deviation from the desired translation across a flat, straight line.

The resulting interference pattern generated from moiré deflectometry, the moiré pattern is a pattern...

Adaptive optics (AO) is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effects of...

An atmospheric nonlinear process unique to CO2 laser wavelengths, whereby CO2 absorbs 10.6-µm radiation and the CO2...

A portable instrument that uses a four-sided reflecting prism or set of mirrors to create a duplicate image of an object on...

A plasma accelerator is a type of particle accelerator that uses electric fields and magnetic fields to accelerate charged...

A standard direct-readout vidicon tube linked by fiber optics to an intensifier for increased sensitivity.

The application of coating without heating of the substrates.

A method of demonstration or examination using a point source illumination without the use of any projection lens between...

A technique for observing the decay of light emissions from sources following their pulsed excitations, based on recording...

An optical fiber that can be used to amplify an optical input. Erbium rare earth ions are added to the fiber core material...

The measurement of first- and higher order properties of a lens and its formed image, including effective focal length, back...

A package for electronic components that is suited for automated assembly into printed circuit boards. The DIP is...

First stated by Abbe, condition states that the ratio of input and output angles, from object point to image point, for two...

Light perceived as achromatic, that is, without hue.

An angstrom, symbolized by the Ångström or Å, is a unit of length used to express atomic and molecular...

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics and biomedical research to obtain...

A form of laser output noise that is caused by thermal, mechanical, or acoustical disturbances of the cavity length. Mode...

A galvanometric scanner, also known as a galvanometer scanner or galvo scanner, is a type of optical scanning device used to...

Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1...

A scientific CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) camera is a type of digital camera specifically designed for...

A device that enlarges and strengthens a signal's output without significantly distorting its original waveshape. There are...

A fast-action shutter inserted between one end of a laser rod and the end mirror; when inserted to prevent emission and then...

A variation of tomography in which several photographs of a patient are taken at different angles, and back-projection of...

Scanning characterized by the generation of a plane or right circular cone with a vertex angle of about 180° by the...

A laser diode in which the beam is confined to the region of the active layer with gain high enough to accomplish such...

Behaving as though characterized by a series of waves having planes of vibration oriented at all possible azimuths.

Optical noise refers to undesirable fluctuations or disturbances in an optical signal that can affect the quality or...

The chromatic resolving power of a prism is invariably stated for the case in which parallel rays of light are incident on...

Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain...

A type of laser used when a great amount of power is required. Avoiding the bulk of large numbers of optical lenses, this...

The series of rings or bands formed when light beams reflected from two polished, adjacent surfaces, placed together with a...

The utilization of photometric measurement to determine the relative magnitudes of the heavenly bodies.

Linear receive optics typically refers to the optical components and systems used in the reception (detection) of linearly...

A retroreflector is an optical device or structure that reflects incident light or electromagnetic waves back to their...

Spatial light interference microscopy (SLIM) is an optical microscopy technique that belongs to the category of quantitative...

An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized...

A filter with a transmission that is high for a particular band of frequencies, but that falls to low values above and below...

Particle acceleration refers to the process by which charged particles, such as electrons or protons, gain kinetic energy...

Chirped pulse amplification (CPA) is a technique used in laser physics to amplify ultrashort laser pulses to high energies...

A pulsed laser that emits a recurring pulsed output. Frequency of the pulses emitted is known as pulsed recurrence frequency...

Inertial confinement fusion (ICF) is a method of achieving nuclear fusion, a process where two atomic nuclei combine to...

The normal condition of vision where an object at infinity is in sharp focus with the eye lens in a neutral or relaxed state.

In coherence theory, an optical law put forth by physicist Emil Wolf that explains the behavior of light as it travels away...

A filter designed to decrease the luminosity of the sky without decreasing that of the landscape in the foreground. A filter...

A method used to approximate the values of the homogeneous second derivatives at each iteration in the course of lens design...

A process used in the design, repair and customization of integrated circuits. A low-power laser etches a silicon wafer...

A neuromorphic vision sensor is a type of imaging device designed to mimic the structure and functioning of the human visual...

A line-scan camera, also known as a line-scan image sensor or linear array camera, is a type of digital camera designed to...

Continuous wave (CW) refers to a type of signal or transmission where the signal is constant and does not vary with time. In...

A nonlinear crystal used to modulate a polarized beam of light by means of the Pockels effect. A Pockels cell is used as a...

A polarizing beamsplitting prism similar in design to the Rochon prism. However, the Senarmont transmits the extraordinary...

Any pyrheliometer that has a filter placed over its sensor to limit the range of solar radiation it will detect; used to...

A pollution-measuring device used to detect the presence of nitric oxide regardless of other gases present. It utilizes the...

A material's ability to undergo plastic deformation, specifically elongation, without fracturing.

A noncrystalline, inorganic mixture of various metallic oxides fused by heating with glassifiers such as silica, or boric or...

Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...

The total scattering attributable to the intrinsic properties of the materials through which an optical wave is propagating.

A computer whose architecture contains several CPU chips arranged in parallel. Often used in image processing systems.

An instrument used to detect and measure the energy distribution of gamma rays. It has been used to chart the radioactivity...

A condition causing variation in output power that is eliminated by mode locking.

A dye laser cell configuration in which the dye flows in the direction of the axis of the laser, yielding symmetrical energy...

Filoviruses are a family of viruses that are responsible for severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers in humans and...

Acronym for profile resolution obtained by excitation. In its simplest form, probe involves the overlap of two...

A plane-parallel interferometer that yields extremely high contrast over a wide range of finesse values without...

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of...

The use of a surgical laser instead of sutures or staples to close a wound or rejoin severed blood vessels.

The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged...

Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by the presence of suspended particles. These...

A filter that is transparent to shorter wavelengths, but opaque to longer wavelengths.

An excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that emits short pulses of light in the ultraviolet spectrum. The term...

An Er:YAG laser is a type of solid-state laser that uses a crystal made of erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet...

Photoelastic equipment and supplies refer to instruments and materials used in photoelasticity, a technique used to analyze...

Metasurfaces are two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength-scale artificial structures, often referred to as meta-atoms or...

Photolithography is a key process in the manufacturing of semiconductor devices, integrated circuits, and...

A type of asynchronous shutter device that is used particularly in CCD sensor applications to capture an image of a...

A photovoltaic cell, commonly known as a solar cell, is a semiconductor device that directly converts light energy into...

A concave mirror that has the form of a paraboloid of revolution. The paraboloidal mirror may have only a portion of a...

Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...

In image processing, the assigning of certain portions (or pixels) of an image a constant value of either 0 (black) or 1...

The distance between the surface of a ferrule and the surface of a fiber end, provided that the ferrule extends above the...

In the context of optical materials, the term "impurity level" refers to the presence of foreign atoms or molecules within...

A cell filled with a transparent material that, when placed in a strong electrical field, exhibits double refraction. Since...

The clarity of an optically reproduced image. Definition is produced by the combination of resolution and acutance.

The transfer of a part of a device's or circuit's output back to its input.

A powerful method, referred to as FCS, for determining the average diffusion coefficients of fluorescent molecules in...

Custom lapping and polishing services involve specialized processes used to improve the surface finish and dimensional...

A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers...

The term reflective is an adjective that describes the ability of a surface or material to reflect light or other forms of...

The sensations of hue and saturation, taken together, but not brightness or lightness.

In television, the period during which the electron beam is cut off while the raster returns from the right-hand side of the...

A microlens array is a grid-like structure composed of numerous small lenses, typically arranged in a regular pattern. Each...

A model that predicts laser-induced damage to thin films caused by irradiation of identical, randomly distributed film...

A mid-infrared camera is a type of imaging device designed to capture images in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectral range,...

An approach to optical character recognition based on matching the input character against a set of stored prototypes.

A hologram facet illumination technique in which the illuminating beam is twice the size of the hologram facet so that full...

A filter that allows heat radiation from an incident beam to pass without absorption or reflection.

A ray that is reflected into the core of an optical fiber from the outer surface of the cladding.

A lack of resolution in a television image as a result of smear ghosts or an insufficiently high video-frequency response....

The use of photographs taken from specially placed cameras, to develop, through computation, a spatial solution of the...

The ability of particular pure liquids to doubly refract when influenced by a magnetic field with a direction that is...

The complex function, H(f), equal to the ratio of the output to input of the device as a function of frequency. The...

A device used to control or block a light beam by means of the Kerr electro-optical effect, and other electro-optic devices...

A filter that is transparent to longer wavelengths but opaque to shorter wavelengths.

The simultaneous collection of two or more signals at a single location. In a digital computer, it refers to the number of...

Machine vision, also known as computer vision or computer sight, refers to the technology that enables machines, typically...

An autocollimator is an optical instrument used for measuring small angular deviations with high precision. It operates on...

An atomic clock is a highly precise timekeeping device that uses the vibrations or oscillations of atoms as a reference for...

Any form of lens, optical system (camera, telescope, microscope, etc.), or opto-electronics utilized for the purpose of...

A method of resampling in which a 16-pixel neighborhood around a given pixel from the original image is used to calculate...

A curve expressing an optical fiber's total transmitted power as a function of its launch angle at the input.

A thermal infrared imaging procedure developed for quality control of printed circuit boards. The thermogram of each board...

A Fresnel lens is a type of optical lens that consists of a series of concentric grooves or steps carved into a flat, thin...

A solid with a structure that exhibits a basically symmetrical and geometrical arrangement. A crystal may already possess...

Image displacement by a decentered lens, rotated on a chuck whose axis of rotation passes through the geometrical center of...

A process and method by which manipulation and orientation of a given number of directed laser beams decreases the motion of...

An amorphous film in which cylindrical bubbles of reverse magnetization can be formed to follow circuit paths usually made...

In printing, a translucent screen used with lenses to provide an even distribution of diffused light.

A nitrogen vacancy (NV) refers to a specific type of defect or impurity in a crystal lattice where a nitrogen atom replaces...

A blur circle refers to the out-of-focus region in an image captured by an optical system. When an object in a scene is not...

A transducer is a device or component that converts one form of energy into another. It is commonly used in various fields,...

Any arrangement of a bundle of optical fibers that alters the shape of the image. For example, by systematic regulation of...

A color whose hue is not produced by a single wavelength in the visible spectrum, but is instead produced by mixing the...

A device used to measure the masses and relative concentrations of atoms and molecules. It utilizes the Lorentz force...

An atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high-resolution imaging and measurement instrument used in nanotechnology, materials...

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are ordinary cells that are genetically reprogrammed to an embryonic stem cell-like...

Bar pattern represented as a sine curve in which the light distribution varies in one direction.

Epitaxial equipment refers to a set of specialized tools and systems used in the process of epitaxy, which is the growth of...

Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal...

A camera equipped with a lens and a long length of perforated film, the latter being moved intermittently between exposures...

A defect on or in an optical element that does not appreciably impair the function of the surface.

Germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) refers to a specific range of UV radiation that has disinfectant properties capable of killing...

The technique by which an analog image is converted by any of several means into a finite array of points, each represented...

A device used to alter the shape of or energy distribution within a beam of radiation.

Oleophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or resist oils. The word oleophobic comes from the...

Phototherapy is a medical treatment that involves the use of light to treat various conditions, particularly those related...

A device used to take turbidimetric or nephelometric measurements by considering the contrast between a constant brightness...

In photography, the density gradient across an edge separating light from darkness, a physically measurable quantity that...

A multiple-beam interferometer, usually consisting of two flat plates, with high reflective ability. The plates are set...

An interference pattern that is recorded on a high-resolution plate, the two interfering beams formed by a coherent beam...

A rangefinder on a camera that is integrated with the focusing mechanism so that when an object's range is determined, the...

FMCW lidar stands for frequency-modulated continuous wave lidar. It is a type of lidar (light detection and ranging)...

Spherical aberration is an optical aberration that occurs when light rays passing through a lens or curved optical surface...

A passive device, having three or more ports, in which input light from one port is coupled only to the next sequential port...

The Weissenberg method, named after the German physicist Karl Weissenberg, is a technique used in x-ray crystallography for...

Low Earth orbit (LEO) refers to a region in space that is relatively close to Earth's surface, typically characterized by...

Refers to the transistors in which the working current flows through only one type of semiconductor material, either P-type...

A numerical value representing the degree of contrast in a television picture: the exponent of the power law used to...

A product of the area of a light beam (normal to its direction of propagation) and the solid angle that the beam includes;...

A lens aberration in which the focal length varies radially outward from the center of the field. It has the effect of...

Pertaining to a device that responds to optical power, emits or modifies optical radiation, or utilizes optical radiation...

An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and...

A photodetector mounted in the same package as a laser diode that is positioned to monitor the output from the rear facet of...

Thin-film deposition equipment refers to machinery and tools used in the process of depositing thin layers of material onto...

In optical emission spectroscopy, the reduction in radiant power in the central portion of spectral lines arising from the...

A telescope stand equipped with a polar axis that can be set parallel to the Earth's axis of rotation and a declination axis...

A gauge designed to measure the degree of vacuum in an evacuated vessel. A simple U-tube containing mercury is adequate for...

A direct-readout television pickup tube.

A weapon launched from a ground-based platform and controlled by a two-way fiber optic data link. The fiber is payed out...

Deformation of a material caused by mechanical factors, especially constant pressure, and not attributable to thermal...

The collection and analysis of data relevant to monitoring the rate and quality of industrial production, either...

The point on an elliptical orbit about the Earth that is the farthest distance from the Earth.

The effect that characterizes an intense laser beam that is passed through an absorbing medium, causing the absorbed energy...

Colors differing only in chromaticity but not in luminance.

An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...

Time-lapse optical coherence tomography (OCT) refers to a medical imaging technique that captures a series of sequential OCT...

A camera designed to form a continuous record of an expansive section of the horizon. The typical panoramic camera is...

A laser cavity, also known as an optical cavity or resonator, is a fundamental component of a laser system. It is a confined...

Process that occurs when a polymerized soft plastic rod with higher refractive index is placed in a bath of a lower...

The direct computation of the Fourier transform of the space variant system output of an optical processor with a single...

Raman spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry and physics to study vibrational, rotational, and other...

The degree to which a pixel in a digital image represents the analog brightness of the corresponding point in the original...

Time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) is a technique used in photon counting applications, particularly in the...

1. A group of optical fibers that are fused and then treated to produce a vacuum-tight optical fiber cone or plate. 2. An...

Quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are semiconductor...

An instrumental technique that utilizes the mass-to-charge ratio of charged particles as recorded from a mass spectrometer...

A technical specification for a consumer product drawn up by Sony and Philips. CD/I combines audio, video and text recorded...

Die bonding is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics assembly, where a semiconductor die or...

In a laser diode, the photocurrent produced by a photodiode that detects the emission from the rear facet of the...

In positioning, rotation about an axis normal to the line of sight. Also known as attitude.

The number of unique ways in which a part can move in an alignment system. In static alignment, there are six: one in the...

Denoting a finished circular edge. A decentered lens is adjusted on a centering chuck so that its image runs true, and the...

A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a powerful imaging instrument used in scientific research, materials...

A spectrograph having glass as its refracting component and used in cases where speed and high dispersion are not required....

The quality of asymmetrical intensity distribution in a laser beam, as opposed to a circular distribution.

(TOF) The length of time needed for a signal to arrive at and be reflected from the target. The basis of an active...

A lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a miniaturized device that integrates various laboratory functions and capabilities onto a single,...

The emission of gas or de-aeration due to thermal variations and often occurring in a vacuum. In a cleanroom, contamination...

GigE, short for gigabit Ethernet, refers to a standard for high-speed Ethernet communication, capable of transmitting data...

The approximately concentric waves that form on a surface that has been polished without an oscillation of the polishing lap.

In a waveguide, a change in direction of the axis without deviating from the plane of polarization.

A cathode that emits electrons, not with the influence of heat radiation, but by means of a high-voltage gradient at its...

A still camera with a shutter capable of opening for a time as short as a fraction of a microsecond. An electronically...

A type of geometrical distortion that brings about a trapezoidal display of a nominally rectangular picture. Usually...

An eyepiece similar to the Huygenian eyepiece, but having an eye lens that is a cemented doublet and that provides more...

A technique used for noncontact inspection of semiconductor wafers. The material is illuminated by an excitation source that...

A surgical device used to deliver laser light. Specifically,contact tips are made with artificially grown sapphire which is...

A technique for obtaining improved resolution of images produced by large telescopes and distorted by the effects of...

One area of image enhancement, accomplished by spatial filtering schemes, that usually involves attenuation of phase changes...

The linear relationship between input and output optical fields for a given optical system or application that allows the...

Computerized lens design algorithm that permits the lens MTF characteristic to be included and controlled during the...

A device for automatic exposure control in which a motor-driven diaphragm adjusts the aperture in response to a signal from...

A helium-neon (HeNe) laser is a type of gas laser that emits visible red light at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. It operates...

CoaXPress (CoaXPress or CXP) is a standardized digital interface and communication protocol used primarily in machine vision...

A term used in data processing to describe a cathode-ray tube that displays graphic or character data.

In image processing, methods of reducing image defects that result from false data. Techniques include sampling, linear...

Type of solid-state display tube in which the readout surface is coated with a material that changes color when positively...

A contraction of binary digit; the fundamental unit of digital computing, a bit is either 1 or 0, expressing the binary...

The vertical or horizontal distance between two addressable points on a display screen; indicates the basic resolution...

A solid-state panel of the photoconductor-electroluminescent type. The photoconductive layer, sensitive to x-rays, is coated...

An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...

The visual phenomenon of the apparent difference in the rate of motion of two objects that are actually moving at the same...

An instrument designed to calculate the amplitude and phase of the different harmonic elements of a radiation wave utilizing...

Scattering caused by the interaction between ingoing and outgoing particles of the same type, with no loss of kinetic energy.

A traveling microscope or an automatic microdensitometer used to measure the spectrum plate obtained in a spectrograph.

Liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) is a display technology that combines liquid crystal materials with silicon-based...

Any object that emits radiation of a wavelength lying between about 0.75 to 1000 µm. A calibrated secondary source...

Method of preserving the measured color value and color information as it is translated from differing devices. For example...

A diffraction pattern sampling unit composed of a 32-element monolithic silicon photodiode array and a readout unit. The...

An optical wedge of very small angles that admits light while sealing out moisture and dirt and that may be rotated to...

The formation of microimages for microreduction. The technique is used, for example, in the production of precision reticles...

A term variously applied to remote sensing techniques that essentially refers to all parametric conditions that influence...

Change of the spatial distribution of a beam of radiation when it interacts with a surface or a heterogeneous medium, in...

A plate of glass, usually a photograph, on which there is a central spot surrounded by concentric annular zones, alternately...

Ratiometry is a technique used in various scientific fields, particularly in analytical chemistry and biochemistry, to...

Refers to the characteristic hue of the ocean according to the presence and concentration of specific minerals or...

A computer-generated kinoform used for data processing because of its use of incoherent light and its wide field of view,...

An optical clock is a highly precise and advanced timekeeping device that relies on the oscillations of electromagnetic...

Photoconductive antenna (PCA) is a semiconductor element that generates or detects high-frequency electromagnetic signals....

An electro-optical infrared tracker consisting of a beamsplitter, an illuminating source, an image dissector tube and an...

Term applied to laser technology to denote an area of above-average intensity often attributable to atmospheric...

A television camera tube in which a low-velocity electron beam scans a photoactive mosaic that has been created by an...

A system that determines whether an image is in or out of focus by means of a source of illumination at the conjugate focal...

Brightfield refers to a type of microscopy and imaging technique in which the specimen is illuminated with a white light...

A substrate refers to a material or surface upon which another material or process is applied or deposited. In various...

Mode hopping in the context of lasers refers to a phenomenon where a laser system abruptly switches from one longitudinal...

A solar simulator is a device used to replicate the spectrum and intensity of sunlight in a controlled environment for...

An instrument devised by Nichols and Hull for use in the measurement of radiation pressure. The device has two small...

A computing paradigm that attempts to process information in a manner similar to that of the brain; it differs from...

A Pockels cell, also known as an electro-optic modulator, is an optical device used to control the polarization of light by...

The time domain is a concept used in signal processing and analysis to describe signals in terms of their behavior over...

An ophthalmic instrument used to measure the magnitude and direction of the maximum and minimum powers of a spectacle lens,...

Time elapsed during the radiant output change from 10 to 90 percent of maximum in a light-emitting diode or laser. Usually...

Differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, also known as Nomarski interference contrast microscopy, is an optical...

A CMOS camera refers to an imaging device that employs a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to...

A vapor-phase oxidation process for fabricating graded-index optical fibers. It differs from outside vapor phase deposition...

Single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) is a specialized technique in biophysics and molecular...

An alteration in magnification from the center of the field to any point in the field, measured in a radial direction from...

A magnon is a quasiparticle representing a quantized spin wave in a magnetic material. In other words, it is a collective...

1. That branch of optics that illustrates the theory in which q is substituted for sin q in Snell's law. Effective results...

A pulsed laser having molecular nitrogen as laser material and a wavelength output of 337 nm in the ultraviolet region. It...

The pattern of microwave field intensity that can be obtained by detecting the minute expansion of a microwave absorber slab...

A digital twin refers to a virtual representation or digital counterpart of a physical object, system, or process. This...

A solution containing colloidal silica particles.

An optical element having plane-inclined surfaces. Usually the faces are inclined toward one another at very small angles....

An interferometer similar in construction to a Fabry-Perot interferometer but having a rear mirror with high reflectivity,...

A dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) refers to a type of optical fiber designed to minimize the effects of chromatic dispersion,...

Optofluidics is an interdisciplinary field that combines principles from optics and fluidics to create devices and systems...

The output of spectral channels written as an integral function of known solar irradiance, atmospheric transmittance and...

A means of achieving higher peak powers and more efficient harmonic generation by narrowing the pulse width and thus...

An intensity distribution (intensity as a function of radial distance from the beam center) which is given by the Gaussian...

Entirely analogous to color photography, but inclusive of light bands that do not appear in the visible spectrum.

Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...

Radiation that is emitted by a source outside the Earth and its atmosphere.

A device that measures the spatial distribution of energy perpendicular to the propagation path of a radiant beam. An energy...

Reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) is a non-invasive imaging technique that allows for high-resolution, in vivo imaging...

A process used to control thickness and parallelism precisely during the production of plane-parallel plates. Elements are...

A double-surfaced catadioptric spherical mirror whose spherical first surface consists of a negative meniscus (concave) lens...

A coating applied to a neutral density glass that is designed to reduce the amount of light evenly across the transmitted...

A computer circuit that supplies the action of problem-solving functions or operations.

A projection screen having vertical ribs or flutes set into a plastic surface.

An infrared-transmitting optical fiber with a hollow core; it can be square, round or rectangular in cross section. Capable...

Directed energy refers to a type of energy that is emitted and transferred in a controlled direction. The term is often...

The position and shape of the image of a point source, as predicted by geometric optics alone. The geometric image is to be...

Any of the constants that relate the tendency of the director to remain parallel to restoring torques throughout the media....

A reticle carrying patterns of various forms that can be rotated in an optical beam to cause variations in the intensity of...

A network interface card (NIC), also known as a network adapter or LAN adapter, is a hardware component that allows...

Laser optics refers to a broad category of optical components and systems designed for manipulating and controlling laser...

A method used to produce precision spherical and aspheric molded glass lenses without grinding or polishing.

A metal tool used to grind lenses with loose abrasive (see diamond cutting tool). The functional surface of the lap is...

A liquid crystal light valve (LCLV), also known as a spatial light modulator (SLM), is an optical device that modulates the...

An optical fiber, usually a single-mode fiber, that has an outer cladding with nearly the same index of refraction as the...

An Abbe condenser in which the upper lens element is fixed. The lower lens may focus the illumination between the elements...

A ray that travels from one point to another without being reflected or refracted.

Technology that uses data from an array of sensors, one of which is commonly lidar, to solve the problem of creating a map...

Chemical vapor deposition is a process of applying dopants to a glass bait by flame reactions of gaseous compounds. See also...

Laser ablation is a process that involves the removal or erosion of material from a target surface using laser energy. This...

Two-photon polymerization (TPP) is a technique used in additive manufacturing, specifically in the field of 3D printing. It...

The number of electrons that each pixel of a charge-coupled device can hold without overflowing and causing blooming.

A device similar to distributed feedback lasers in construction and operation, but in which the period grating that produces...

A technique used to store wavefront information on thin polarization information-recordable materials by controlling the...

Quantum sensing refers to a class of sensing technologies that leverage principles from quantum mechanics to enhance the...

The ratio of emitted optical power of a source to the input electrical power.

A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...

The smallest linear diameter to which a laser or other beam of radiant energy is capable of being focused, depending on the...

A laser-pumped crystal with nonlinear optical properties inside of an optical resonator in which the output generates...

A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...

The utilization of the light produced when electrical energy is directly converted into light within devices used for visual...

An optical barcode reader, commonly known as a barcode scanner, is a device that uses optical technology to capture and...

An automatic surface-generating process involving the removal of a material from a given surface. Optical milling typically...

A scanning device used to cyclically tune through a given frequency range to determine the amplitude-frequency distribution...

A power intensity pattern produced by the mutual interference of partially coherent beams that are subject to minute...

An electron tube that is used as a camera tube for a television system. When the picture to be transmitted is focused on a...

A phenomenon, exploited for medical imaging, in which the nuclei of material placed in a strong magnetic field will absorb...

A device used in the sputtering of thin films, in which a magnet system on the back of the cathode deflects the electrons,...

A contour mapping technique that uses electronic scanning and sampling techniques instead of a reference grating (see moire...

Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a manufacturing process that involves creating three-dimensional...

A reflecting prism that inverts the image. The image is reflected four times internally and emitted laterally. The prism is...

A system in which a sequence of direct measurements of the target position is fed into a tracking filter that may produce...

A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In...

A direct reading spectrograph having a photomultiplier assembly in place of a photographic plate. The output from the...

A high-speed shutter, similar to a Kerr cell, that uses the birefringence produced in a liquid during the passage of an...

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...

Ion-beam sputtering (IBS) is a physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique used for depositing thin films onto substrates. It...

A contraction of quasi stellar. An astronomical object that appears to be a star but has a different, larger redshift.

Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to...

Hyperspectral resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in the spectral information captured by a...

A type of pyroelectric detector with favorable qualities of linearity, sensitivity and spectral responsivity used in FTIR...

A theoretical, ideal lens capable of producing perfect images. Used as a lens design and analysis tool to image collimated...

In digital data transmission, the separation of the two binary states into output at two frequencies.

A quantum cascade laser (QCL) is a type of semiconductor laser that operates based on the principles of quantum mechanics....

A halogen lamp, also known as a tungsten halogen, quartz-halogen, or quartz iodine lamp, is an incandescent lamp that uses a...

Retroreflection is a phenomenon in optics where light is reflected back toward its source, typically in a direction nearly...

An arc flash is a sudden release of electrical energy due to an electric arc — a continuous, high-current discharge of...

Infrared (IR) refers to the region of the electromagnetic spectrum with wavelengths longer than those of visible light, but...

Ultrasonic refers to sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing, typically above...

As applied to a device or machine, the ratio of total power input to the usable power output of the device.

A doped or absorbing transparent medium cut or molded into a wedge in order to measure the real and imaginary components of...

Optimization method used in optical design computer programs that employs a variable-by-variable approach to construct new...

Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) is an advanced imaging technique that provides information about the lifetime of...

GaN (gallium nitride) distributed feedback (DFB) lasers refer to a specific type of semiconductor laser based on Gallium...

A hologram formed without lenses and with the object and reference points sharing the same plane. In the initial recording,...

Magnetorheological finishing (MRF) is a precision optics polishing technique used for shaping and finishing optical surfaces...

A filter that passes a series of wavelength regions that are at equal distances from one another, such that its output...

Recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) is a molecular biology technique used to rapidly amplify specific DNA or RNA...

A filter that creates spherical aberration resulting in an image with a soft outline.

A device that changes the number of lines per frame of a video image to adapt to a lower resolution format, either by...

Uniform measure of time based on dynamics law and calculated according to planetary orbital paths; specifically, Earth's...

A laser crystal, also known as an active medium or gain medium, is a solid-state material used in the construction of...

A nonradiative transition refers to a process in which an electron or an atom undergoes a change in its energy state without...

A modified form of an image-retaining panel that can be used in subdued daylight. This is achieved by adding a layer of zinc...

Piezoresistance is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where the electrical resistance of a material changes in...

Digital signal processing (DSP) refers to the manipulation and analysis of signals, which are representations of physical...

A computerized token-passing local area network (LAN) configuration adopted by General Motors for real time control over the...

An OLED display that has an integrated electronic backplane as its substrate. Active-matrix OLED displays use at least two...

The separation of unpolarized light into two plane-polarized elements by a doubly refracting crystal. When a crystal, such...

A laser, which stands for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," is a device that produces coherent and...

The butt (edge to edge) splice of two pieces of film produced by a heat splicer that melts the edges together; used in...

FTIR (Fourier transform infrared) spectrometer is a powerful analytical instrument used to obtain an infrared spectrum of...

A solution or combination of solutions that serves as a filter.

In a lens or lens system, that surface at which the projections of an entering and exiting ray intersect. Also known as the...

A neutral-colored gelatin wedge, cast between glass plates, that is used as an intensity scale in certain types of...

An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms,...

The letter form used on visual performance test charts. The overall letter height is equal to five times the thickness of...

One of the four functions that allows the computation of a transparent medium's index of refraction, provided the index has...

An objective that uses the mineral fluorite in its construction to reduce the secondary spectrum. It is usually intermediate...

A device used to detect elevation, pyramid and resolution errors in prisms and other components by bringing them into...

Consists of a pair of radio telescopes concentrated on a single celestial object. This technique creates a single radio...

Interferometric modulator display (IMOD) is a type of display technology used in electronic devices, known for its energy...

A metabolite is any small molecule that is a product of metabolism, the chemical processes that occur within living...

An electric discharge in a low-pressure gas having a low-current density and a space potential near the cathode that is much...

A process in which a mixture of one or more monomers, plus a catalyst, polymerize under exposure to light radiation....

A kind of spectrograph in which some form of detector, other than a photographic film, is used to measure the distribution...

An achromat, in the context of optics, refers to a type of lens or lens system designed to reduce chromatic aberration....

The radius of curvature that an optical fiber can bend without breaking.

Optical glass refers to a type of glass specifically engineered and manufactured for use in optical components and systems,...

In a fiber optic guided missile, the point at which the optical fiber pays out from the bobbin on which it is wound.

Optical switching refers to the process of controlling the routing or transmission of optical signals within a network using...

Any filter in which the range of frequencies within a chosen radius suffers no attenuation and the range of frequencies...

An image that is similar to the object but rotated 180° about the axis of the system.

In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....

Ray tracing is a rendering technique used in computer graphics to simulate the way light interacts with objects in a scene....

Quotient of total luminous flux divided by total radiant flux; lumens per watt. (For a source, quotient of total luminous...

Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...

A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....

A specially designed microscope for observing the etched surface of a polished metal specimen. The specimen is often laid...

A piece of glass, quartz or other transparent material formed roughly by molding or cutting into the approximate shape and...

A Risley prism, also known as a Risley prism pair or Risley rotating prism, is an optical device used for controlling the...

An alien, electrically charged atomic system in a solid; an ion substituted for the constituent atom or ion in a crystal...

The SI unit of temperature equal to 1°C. See absolute temperature scale.

An aptamer is a short, single-stranded DNA or RNA molecule that can bind to a specific target molecule with high affinity...

A piece of glass with a high refractive index that is fused to the major blank.

Optical tweezers refer to a scientific instrument that uses the pressure of laser light to trap and manipulate microscopic...

Machine learning (ML) is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on the development of algorithms and...

Horizontal concentrations that comprise the dominant factor in atmospheric gradient correction. The range bias near due...

1. The range of frequencies or wavelengths over which radiations are absorbed or emitted in a transition between a specific...

A light therapy that utilizes nonionizing light sources, including lasers, LEDs, and broadband light, in the visible and...

In optics, a motion controller refers to a device or system that precisely controls the movement of optical components, such...

The relative path difference (or phase shift) traveled between two rays that pass through different mediums from the same...

In reference to infrared, emissions that are like radio waves but that have a higher frequency.

Holmium lasers are a type of medical laser that utilizes holmium-doped crystals as the gain medium. The term holmium laser...

The small central portion of the human retina that is responsible for providing the clearest, and most distinct aspects of...

Plasma-enriched deposition or planar magnetic sputtering that offers increased deposition rates in optical thin-film...

A photoreceptor material used in solar cells and in drums for laser printers and high-speed copiers because of its high...

A type of copying camera in which the object is placed on a horizontal easel and photographed by a horizontal camera above...

Double-clad fiber (DCF) is a specialized optical fiber that features two concentric cladding layers surrounding a core. The...

A high-frequency pulse-rate laser with an output limited by the heat capacity of the laser medium. Instead of having...

Medical diagnostic (x-ray) imaging using laser printers to produce high-resolution digital hard copy instead of film exposed...

A hydrogel is a three-dimensional network of polymer chains that are hydrophilic, meaning they have a strong affinity for...

Describing a surface that is coated with a film of metal of such thickness that it transmits about one-half of the incident...

Rolling shutter artifacts are distortions or visual anomalies that can occur in images or videos captured by cameras with...

Radiation in which the phase relationship between any two points in the radiation field has a constant difference, or is...

Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the...

Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...

The electrical power used to stimulate any light source. Power supplies may be step-up or step-down transformers; rectifiers...

Remote inspection refers to the process of inspecting, evaluating, or monitoring assets, equipment, infrastructure, or...

Concave and convex spherical mirrors are types of curved mirrors that have surfaces shaped like segments of spheres. These...

An intensified charge-coupled device that uses a large negative charge at the grid to switch off the flow of electrons at...

A device used to measure the opening time of a shutter. The most common devices depend on the charging or discharging of an...

An image tube that functions in low-light-level conditions by virtue of its series of stacked sections wherein the output of...

The Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor is an optical device used for measuring the wavefront aberrations of an optical system....

The object distance at which the eye is focused with the eye lens in a neutral or relaxed state.

Freeform optics refers to the design and fabrication of optical surfaces that do not follow traditional symmetric shapes,...

A system in which the electrical signal embedded within an audio input signal is converted to a modulated light pattern and...

Optical source intended to reduce bleeding as well as to abet wound or vessel healing through cauterization, used in eye...

Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...

A term used to denote a difference in magnification along mutually perpendicular meridians. Anamorphic systems are basically...

In positioning, in-plane rotation about the vertical axis. Also known as azimuth.

An optical system with object and image points at infinity. Literally, "without a focal length."

A shutter in which the opening and closing times for a large aperture setting occupy a substantial fraction of the total...

1. Attribute of a visual sensation that permits a judgment to be made of the amount of pure chromatic color present. 2. The...

A positive after-image that is maintained for a minute or more.

A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of...

In computer graphics, the point on the display screen where the electron beam is located before the display instruction is...

In vitro is a Latin term that translates to "in glass." In scientific contexts, particularly in biology and medicine, it...

A breakout cable, also known as a fan-out cable or breakout assembly, is a type of cable that combines multiple individual...

A mechanical or electronic device used to control the amount of time that a light-sensitive material is exposed to radiation.

1. A piece of glass with plane parallel surfaces used to admit light into an optical system and to exclude dirt and...

Optical design software refers to specialized computer programs used by optical engineers, physicists, and designers to...

In an interlaced scanning electro-optical system such as television, the system resolution will be less than the number of...

A defect on a polished optical surface whose length is many times its width. Block reek is a chainlike scratch formed in...

A system of Japanese origin that utilizes Fresnel lenses and a fiber optic network to transmit sunlight to otherwise...

Least value of color value combinations which gives white light; minimum purity as determined to be white.

A technology that uses electrically activated holograms stored within specially developed crystals to route information in...

A facility selected by mutual agreement of the user and the prospective vendor to test a prototype before it is offered for...

Photonics contract manufacturing refers to the outsourcing of the production of photonics-related components, devices, or...

Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...

A scattering photometer using scattered light in the solid angle 4.51+0 19° with respect to the forward direction, and...

Frame rate refers to the frequency at which consecutive images, or frames, are displayed in a video sequence. It is...

The outside or covering layer.

A nonmagnetic instrument utilizing an electrofocus and deflection tube with a photocathode for imaging purposes. The optical...

Micro-optical coherence tomography (micro-OCT) is an imaging technique that is an adaptation of optical coherence tomography...

In image processing, the memory that stores the values for the point processes. Input pixel values are those for the...

The spreading of potentially equal radiation frequencies that results in broadening of the spectral line. This effect is...

The point spread function (PSF) is a fundamental concept in imaging that describes the response of an imaging system to a...

A diffraction grating is an optical component consisting of a surface with a periodic structure of equally spaced, parallel...

A wide-field multiobject spectroscopy system used in astronomy, in which a bundle of low-loss optical fibers positioned on...

In ultraviolet and fluorescence photography, the term applied to the filter used in the photographic system and with the...

A fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is a type of optical filter that is inscribed or "written" into the core of an optical fiber. It...

A method of spectral analysis using wavelengths between 100 and 300 nm that utilizes both emission and absorption techniques.

An optical combiner, in the context of optics and display technologies, refers to a device or component that combines...

An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) is a specialized instrument used in optical fiber communications to characterize...

1. The continuous thin strip marked by the scanning beam. Generally, during return of the scan, the line is blanked out. 2....

A microchannel plate (MCP) is a specialized electron multiplier device used in various applications such as particle...

Also called proximity focus image intensifier. A compact image intensifier that utilizes a microchannel plate...

Topological photonics is a branch of physics and optics that explores the application of topological concepts to the...

The minimum value of luminance for vision. The value may vary with age as well as dark adaption period. (Measured range...

Temperature of the blackbody having a spectral power distribution approximately proportional to the test source at all...

An imaging system that uses a mosaic of tiny light-sensitive semiconductors (phototransistors) to produce individual outputs...

A custom optic refers to an optical component that is designed, manufactured, and tailored to meet specific requirements or...

A device used to control or block a light beam by means of the Kerr electro-optical effect.

1. A device used in chemistry to compare the colors of solutions held in flat-bottomed tubes and viewed along the length of...

A homogeneous solid solution with crystal lattice sites occupied, at random, by the molecules or ions of two or more...

Generally, the orientation of rays of light striking a surface.

A device that converts data transmitted in the parallel mode to a sequence of bits at a single frequency for output in the...

Near the boundary or edge of the field of an optical system; the outer fringe.

The physical area containing an assembly of computer graphics equipment for presenting generated images and allowing...

An amplifying device that returns a portion of its output to its input as a means of modifying the device's performance.

Micro-robotics refers to the field of robotics that involves the design, development, and application of miniature robotic...

Also called DLIP, a high-speed, high-resolution processing technique that uses high-power, pulsed laser systems to directly...

A single-particle scattering technique in which an incident laser beam is tightly focused by means of lenses to yield a...

Three filters used in making a color print of a color negative, red, green and blue-violet, respectively. Each filter...

A gas laser wherein the gas mixture is not exhausted into the atmosphere but is continually recycled. It is excited in the...

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical...

A category of systems designed to communicate a photo taken from the air (e.g., aircraft, balloon, satellite) to a ground...

Pushbroom scanning is a technique used in remote sensing and imaging systems, particularly in satellite and aerial sensors,...

A photoelectrically controlled, alphanumeric reading device that converts characters to audible or sorting signals which can...

A laser using a dye solution as its active medium. Its output is a short pulse of broad spectral content and its achievable...

1. A solid figure whose base is a circle and whose sides taper upward evenly to a point or apex. Light rays diverging from...

A binary code with two information states (1 and 0) and no neutral state between bits.

The metal tube that maintains the optical components of a lens in proper relationship. Some lenses are mounted in metal...

A photomultiplier tube (PMT) is a highly sensitive vacuum tube that detects and amplifies low levels of light. It is widely...

The total luminous flux given out per unit area; i.e., the sum of the luminous emittance and any radiation that is reflected...

A device using the Kerr effect to read back the signals from mechanically recorded tapes and discs. It consists of a light...

Unified notation for specification of reflectance in terms of both incident- and reflected-beam geometry; i.e., the ratio of...

The storage surface of an electron beam tube that is scanned by an electron beam to generate an output-signal current...

Phase distortion refers to a change in the phase relationships between different frequency components of a signal. In the...

A qubit, short for quantum bit, is the fundamental unit of information in quantum computing and quantum information...

A mechanical or electrical-electromagnetic device for periodically interrupting or blocking abeam of light for a brief known...

A wireless stereo imaging device used in conjunction with a monitor to produce a virtual interactive environment. Liquid...

1. A lens formed to a desired curve and used to form a polisher. 2. A piece of glass included in a block to fill out the...

Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically...

A flat plate having its surface formed into a random pattern by abrasives. Radiation wavelengths that are longer than the...

A coating made up of many layers of material having alternating high and low refractive index. In this way, it is possible...

A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the...

A type of receiver that uses a local oscillator at a frequency deliberately offset from that of the incoming signal. It is...

A type of telescope mount that permits direct azimuth and elevation adjustments.

Fluorescent proteins are proteins that exhibit the property of fluorescence, which is the ability to absorb light at a...

A camera with two taking lenses and synchronized shutters. Two images are recorded simultaneously on separate frames,...

An operate mode in which the sensor is programmed to perform a task such as generating output when the light level falls...

A radiometric device or system having uniform responsivity relative to all of the radiation parameters, or relative to one...

The qualities of color associated with hue and saturation, but not brightness or lightness.

Scattering (other than material scattering) that is attributable to variations of geometry and index profile of the...

Plasmon ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) is a technique used in thin-film deposition processes, particularly in the production...

A stroboscopelike apparatus that uses a copper vapor laser to illuminate an object for very short time periods (about 30 ns).

The method of determining the energy distribution of high-speed charged particles by the luminous effect formed when the...

The fraction of available output from a radiant source that is coupled and transmitted by an optical fiber.

Optical fiber optic switches are devices used in optical fiber communication systems to selectively route optical signals...

Hydrophilic is a term used to describe substances or materials that have an affinity for water. The word hydrophilic comes...

A thick meniscus lens arranged concentric with the center of curvature of a spherical mirror to produce an image free of...

An emission spectrum is a graphical representation or a characteristic pattern of the wavelengths or frequencies of light...

A device to hold and locate a workpiece as it guides, controls or limits a cutting tool.

CID, or charge injection device, camera refers to a type of imaging device that utilizes a specific kind of solid-state...

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are substances or compounds used to enhance the thermal conductivity between two surfaces...

A fiber optic end plate constructed by drawing a bundle of parallel fibers embedded in glass and cutting it into thin...

A device incorporating a spatial light modulator and a reference filter; used for matching an input optical waveform or...

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects...

A plate of glass in which a face has been frosted by grinding or etching. It diffuses light by scattering in directions...

A camera that uses an image converter tube in such a way that voltage waveforms applied to internal electrodes cause the...

Photochromic refers to a property exhibited by certain materials, typically organic compounds or dyes, which undergo...

A phonon is a quantum of vibrational energy associated with the periodic motion of atoms or molecules in a crystalline...

The unusual and anisotropic diamagnetic quality observed in particular crystals such as those composed of bismuth.

A scanning probe microscope that analyzes the surface of a specimen by recording the intensity of light as it is focused...

An input device for a computer that detects and reads the data, in the form of punched holes in cards, by light that is...

The discrepancy between the absolute luminance threshold and the photochromatic threshold.

A light source that emits an uneven distribution of radiant energy through the visible range.

That branch of science involved in the study and utilization of the motion, emissions and behaviors of currents of...

A device used to count objects that pass a given point by allowing each object to obstruct a beam of light falling on a...

An assembly of optical fibers that will not transmit coherent images or information because the relationship of the fibers...

A crystal, glass, or quartz slicing and cutting machine is a specialized piece of equipment used in the manufacturing...

A technique for removing thermal noise and drift from focal plane assemblies by sampling the system output between views of...

Mode-locking is a technique used in lasers to produce ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of picoseconds,...

A lens having each of its outer faces curved outward.

The angular spectrum approach is a mathematical and computational technique used in the field of optics to analyze and...

Conduction of an electric current through a chemical compound in its natural state, solution or as a molten, to decompose...

A protective jacket added to an optical fiber to facilitate use in harsh environments. Armor usually consists of steel or...

Phase contrast microscopy is an optical microscopy technique that enhances the contrast of transparent and colorless...

A technique for creating optimal performance in a system by producing a specific beam irradiance distribution, usually...

A pulse that has the waveform of a Gaussian distribution.

A type of cooling system in which one fluid is used to carry heat off another without direct contact between the two.

An acronym for radioactive detection, identification and computation. The term refers to the detection and measurement of...

The diffraction pattern of a source such as a light-emitting diode, injection laser diode or the output end of an optical...

A laser-induced scar on experimental bare glass surfaces usually attributable to threshold damage and indicative of isolated...

Supercontinuum refers to a broad spectrum of light that spans a wide range of wavelengths, typically from the visible to the...

Spectra can be conveniently recorded on photographic film or plates. The portions that are occupied by regions of the...

In a charge-coupled device, the disappearance of some of the accumulated charge into the silicon during readout.

Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or...

A type of high-speed photographic shutter that uses Faraday rotation to produce exposure times as fast as 1 microsecond. It...

Flow chemistry, also known as continuous-flow chemistry, is a chemical manufacturing process where reactions take place in a...

A mode of laser printing in which each pixel is printed four times, providing sharper lines and a continuous tone from...

STED microscopy, or stimulated emission depletion microscopy, is a superresolution imaging technique in fluorescence...

Energy loss encountered at connectors in optical fiber transmission systems. The major contributors are mutual core...

The maximum level of laser radiation that a person may be exposed to without adverse biological effects.

Thin-film coatings are layers of material applied to the surface of an object or substrate, typically to modify its optical,...

Used for high-resolution surface study with subnanometer resolution. XRIM uses interfacial phase contrast with application...

The measurement of heat energy as determined from absolute zero as the zero point on the scale. Increments are identical to...

An aplanatic surface is an optical surface that is specifically designed or shaped to minimize spherical aberration and...

A small television tube originally developed for closed-circuit television. It is about 1 inch in diameter and 5 inches...

A machine vision system is an integrated combination of hardware and software components designed to capture, process, and...

A polarizing prism assembly made up of two cemented calcite halves. The prism transmits the ordinary ray without deviation,...

Oscillator device composed of a semiconducting diode in a coaxial resonating cavity. When the biasing current is applied to...

Edge enhancement technique that accentuates all edge details in an image without discriminating as to spatial orientation.

A hemispherical covering that is rotatable about a central axis. There is a slit opening along one side wide enough to allow...

A double-plate device used to transmit polarized light and form interference fringes of the light, thus indicating its...

A device used to maintain near-absolute temperatures for experimental procedures.

A positively charged particle emitted from the nucleus of an unstable isotope, characterized by two protons and two...

A band of light that appears along the outer edge of a transparent material under microscopic investigation and that moves...

A neutral density filter that, when placed in front of the iris of a lens, increases the f-stop range.

Glass that transmits near-ultraviolet radiation but is opaque in the visible region. Also known as woods glass.

A vacuum deposition method in which the coating material (target) is removed from the surface of the coating source...

A fiber optic transceiver, often simply referred to as an "optical transceiver," is a device used in fiber optic...

An aspheric lens is a type of lens whose surface profiles deviate from the traditional spherical shape. Unlike spherical...

Parallel scanning refers to a method of acquiring data or images simultaneously from multiple sources or in parallel, rather...

In television system specifications, the number of parallel horizontal black and white lines of equal thickness, that can be...

A homogeneous optical medium or coating that transmits only in particular regions of the spectrum. It is used to change or...

The formation of an interferogram by means of two holograms on the same recording medium, often used for determining small...

A YAG crystal refers to a solid-state crystal made of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), which is a synthetic crystalline...

A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital...

An instrument that uses a blackened silver-disc reflector with a shutter to create temperature fluctuations that are...

Embedded vision refers to the integration of computer vision technologies into various embedded systems, devices, or...

Lensless microscopy, also known as computational or holographic microscopy, is an imaging technique that captures and...

A beam of light whose electrical field amplitude distribution is Gaussian. When such a beam is circular in cross section,...

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties...

1. In optics, the ability of a lens system to reproduce the points, lines and surfaces in an object as separate entities in...

After putting a thick photographic emulsion on a front-faced mirror, and exposing the emulsion to monochromatic incident...

When splitting the output of a single optical fiber into two or more fibers, the difference in the maximum loss between any...

The material that has the lowest possible constant melting point of any possible combination of the same components.

In digital image processing, a method of convolution that reduces random noise by replacing the value of each pixel with the...

A special form of microscope that utilizes interference for observing and measuring the phase and optical thickness in...

A camera that consists of a concave spherical mirror with an aspheric plate situated at the center of curvature of the...

The creation of topographical maps and charts from a stereographic record produced through the overlapping of consecutive...

A graphic representation of a distribution function such as frequency by means of rectangles whose widths represent the...

Chip-on-board (COB) lights refer to a type of LED lighting technology where multiple LED chips are directly mounted onto a...

An accurate cathode-ray tube display used to provide visual representation stored in a computer for the interpretation and...

In positioning, rotation about the line of sight or direction of travel.

A cathode-ray tube that either splits an electron beam from one source or uses beams from two sources to produce two beams,...

An instrument designed to measure angles in azimuth; used in general topographic work and military gunnery.

A flowmeter is a device used to measure the flow rate or quantity of a fluid passing through a particular point in a system....

A variation from standard physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating techniques, magnetron sputtering is a plasma coating...

A junction between semiconductors that differ in their doping level conductivities but not in their atomic or alloy...

An acousto-optic modulator (AOM) is a device that utilizes the interaction between sound waves and light waves to modulate...

A technique for polishing silicon in which an alkaline suspension containing silicon dioxide particles creates a soft layer...

Freeform mirrors refer to reflective optical components that deviate from traditional symmetric or rotationally symmetric...

A laser diode with an output beam contained in the active layer by means of a built-in refractive index profile formed in...

A type of high-speed cine camera that uses different image paths and a Kerr cell to produce a series of successive images at...

Phase matching is a crucial concept in the field of optics, particularly in nonlinear optics and the generation of coherent...

A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....

Hyperchromic shift refers to an increase in the absorption of light, leading to a higher absorbance, often observed in...

The attraction of particles suspended in a solution to a cathode, as a result of an electric field.

Intravital microscopy is an imaging technique used to visualize biological processes within living organisms, typically in...

In optics, the term image jump refers to a displacement or shift in the apparent position of an image when a change occurs...

In semiconductor physics and materials science, the term "III-V materials" refers to compounds composed of elements from...

An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...

Ultraviolet reflectance refers to the ability of a material or surface to reflect UV light. Ultraviolet light is...

Laser marking is a process in which a laser beam is used to mark or engrave a surface by altering its properties or...

3D Laser Triangulation - A technology that allows sensors to probe the surroundings. Laser triangulation systems have an...

Quantum entanglement is a phenomenon in quantum mechanics where two or more particles become correlated to such an extent...

Also duty factor, duty ratio. The product of the pulse duration and the pulse repetition frequency of a wave composed of...

Laser texturing is a manufacturing process that involves using a laser beam to selectively modify the surface of a material,...

Concave is an adjective used to describe a surface or shape that curves inward or has a hollow or recessed appearance. In...

Neuromorphic refers to the design and development of computing systems or devices that are inspired by the structure and...

Histochemical staining is a laboratory technique used in biology and medicine to visualize specific chemical components...

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method of secure communication that utilizes principles from quantum mechanics to...

A device that functions throughout the continuous radiation of a linearly polarized plane wave, and whose nonreciprocity...

A dark-field microscope used to view extremely small objects. These objects are suspended in a gas or liquid in an enclosure...

The apparent difference in brightness between light and dark areas of an image. For a light target against a dark...

A spatial light modulator consisting of a metallized polymer film stretched over an array of metal-oxide semiconductor...

A MEMS fiber optic switch is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device designed to selectively route optical signals...

Infrared optics refer to optical components and systems designed to manipulate and control infrared (IR) light, which lies...

Any photographic medium that, when chemically developed, produces an exact photographic reproduction of the original.

Flow cytometry is a powerful technique used in biology and medicine for the quantitative analysis of the physical and...

A microscope used either to detect selective absorption of various wavelengths by the specimen or to achieve increased...

Amplifier in which the input and output pulse heights are directly proportional.

A device used to create a light output that exceeds light input, the energy being provided by an electric field. It consists...

Handheld optical laser device containing a semiconductor or DPSS source. The output is corrected via internal collimating...

(SALI) A type of spectroscopy in which neutral atoms or molecules are ionized by an excimer laser beam and then measured by...

Measurement of a translation stage's deviation from absolute straightness, that is, its angular motion in both the vertical...

A device used to evaluate the quality of fiber optic splices made in the field by injecting light into the cladding of the...

A lens having each of its outer faces curved inward.

In the context of electronics and optics, an isolator refers to a device that allows the transmission of signals in one...

The application of coherent wavefront techniques to the determination of the physical state of a system without appreciably...

A microscope in which laser light is delivered through single-mode fibers that replace the pinhole usually used in confocal...

Measures the refractive indices axially from the fiber profile. Microscopy technique provides an interferogram with high...

A maser that relies on the fact that electrons in orbital motion in high-magnetic fields will emit energy at the cyclotron...

A system for automatic industrial process control or measurement, consisting of an optical module for image acquisition, a...

A coherent optical fiber bundle in which the configuration is flat rather than round, giving an output in a line.

Lithography is a key process used in microfabrication and semiconductor manufacturing to create intricate patterns on the...

A radioactive element that is placed or injected into a system to obtain an autoradiogram of the system. It is used in a...

An instrument that uses electromagnetic fields to sort out the relative masses of atoms and molecules.The same way an...

In the optical shop, the process of positioning and marking a blank or lens before surfacing, cutting and edging.

A condition during laser operation when laser output can no longer be increased by additional electric current.

A semiconductor laser diode that emits light perpendicular to the active region. The output radiation is taken through the...

The frequency space between consecutive transmission peaks in the transmission spectrum of a Fabry-Perot interferometer or...

The approximate dimension of the refractive-index correlation length in a given medium.

Magnification that is above the level of maximum useful magnification and does not contribute useful resolving power. In a...

An ultrafast pulsed laser is a type of laser that emits extremely short pulses of light with durations typically on the...

A photonic crystal surface-emitting laser (PCSEL) refers to a type of laser diode that emits light from its surface rather...

The creation of a planned sequence of data input that is obtained while airborne for use in aerial photogrammetry and other...

A small telescope mounted on a tripod and free to rotate about a vertical axis. A spirit level is mounted over the telescope...

The movement of particles or ions in a solution toward the electrode having the opposite sign because of the application of...

A form of liquid crystal widely used in displays, achieved by sandwiching a liquid crystal material between two substrates...

Fluorescence microscopy is a specialized optical imaging technique used in biology, chemistry, and materials science to...

A frame taken with a CCD camera over an exposure length of zero seconds with the lens cap on or the shutter closed and no...

A phage, short for bacteriophage, is a type of virus that infects and replicates within bacteria. Phages are composed of...

The phenomenon observed by A.H. Compton in 1923 -- that some scattered radiation possesses a longer wavelength and...

At a given modulation frequency, wavelength, and for a given effective noise bandwidth, the radiant power that produces a...

A crystal-based device that combines and adjusts the intensities of multiple wavelengths of laser light in order to obtain...

A tool made by imbedding small particles of diamond in the working edge. In the optical field, the most commonly used...

A structural method of optical character recognition, used where the input media are variable, as in hand-written or...

One of various types of fluorescent screens used to detect x-ray radiation. Photographic film is mildly sensitive to x-rays,...

An instrument designed to place nongraphic information, usually generated by a computer, onto photographic film. The...

A host crystal for chromium that emits pulsed or continuous-wave laser light, tunable from about 720 to 790 nm.

A machining process that uses a laser to cut three-dimensional molds or models.

A contact tip made of artificial sapphire (AlO2) that allows surgeons to use laser power to cut and coagulate tissue...

A polygonal mirror, also known as a multifaceted mirror or facet mirror, is a type of optical component used in various...

In biology, particularly genetics and evolutionary biology, the phenotype refers to the observable characteristics or traits...

A substance that transmits the infrared, but which is too delicate or fragile to be used in the form of a single crystal....

A technique used in integrated optics where a groove is cut on a substrate surface and covered by a thin film to facilitate...

An optical data storage device that permits the user to store data (write) and play it back (read), but not to erase or...

A broadband filter is an electronic or electromagnetic device designed to pass a range of frequencies or signals within a...

Structured illumination microscopy (SIM) is an advanced optical imaging technique used in microscopy to enhance the...

A device containing two opposed quartz wedges of equal angle, one wedge being movable along its length by a micrometer...

The slope of the curve when output is plotted against input for quantum efficiency in a device.

Camera Link HS (high speed) is a standard developed for high-speed digital data transmission in machine vision and...

A Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) is a state of matter that forms at temperatures close to absolute zero. It is named after...

A set of mirrors mounted on solenoids to move them into and out of the path of a laser beam, making it possible for multiple...

A laser rangefinder is a device that uses laser technology to measure the distance between the device and a target. It...

A method of coding image data by storing in memory only differences in brightness of each pixel from that of its nearest...

Pertaining to electromagnetic radiation as perceived by the eye; that is, with the contributions as wavelengths in the...

The adhesion of two sufficiently clean and close-fitting surfaces without the use of cement or glue. The optically contacted...

1. A device used to trace out an object and build up an image. One of the most common of these types is video scanning. The...

Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the...

A frame taken to identify electronic noise in a CCD imaging device. A dark frame is recorded without exposing the CCD to any...

A contraction for "texture element." A base unit used in computer graphics that defines the surface of three-dimensional...

Light produced by visible radiation that moves from the light source to the object without reflection. With respect to...

Label-free refers to a technique or method that does not require the use of additional labels, tags, or markers to detect or...

A coherent fiber optic bundle made from fibers whose diameter changes gradually along its length. Used to magnify or reduce...

Whole slide imaging (WSI), also known as virtual slide microscopy or digital pathology, is a technology that involves the...

An etalon is an optical device that consists of two parallel reflecting surfaces separated by a precise and known distance....

A standard for fiber optic data transmission systems being developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and...

The least angle of incidence at which total internal reflection takes place. The angle of incidence in a denser medium, at...

A special-purpose camera used by ophthalmologists to photograph the retina of the eye. The optical system operates through...

In physics, momentum transfer is the amount of momentum transferred from one particle to another during particle collision...

A process for the production of optical fibers. A glass bait is rotated in a traversing flame of a reaction burner....

In a radiation detector, the ratio of the output to the input signal.

A vibrational transition refers to a change in the vibrational energy of a molecule. Molecules consist of atoms that are...

An instrument used to measure the light from a scene to be photographed and to indicate the camera lens and shutter settings...

A Mach-Zehnder interferometer is an optical device used to measure the phase difference between two collimated beams of...

In the context of imaging, particularly digital imaging and printing, "orange peel" refers to a texture or visual distortion...

A laser with output over a wide range of wavelengths spanning the far-infrared region of the spectrum (30 to 1000 µm);...

The process of adjusting input pixel by pixel at the filter plane to adapt to nondeal phase behavior in an optical...

Sparkling granular pattern that is observed when an object diffusely reflects coincident laser light. Speckle appears as an...

An optical interference technique widely utilized as a method of nondestructive testing when determining the ray deflection...

A CubeSat is a type of miniaturized satellite characterized by its standardized size and modular design. CubeSats are...

The entrance slit, also known simply as the slit, is an essential component in optical instruments such as spectrometers and...

The discernment of depth or apparent difference in distance that causes the object to stand out from its background because...

A phase reflection scanner that eliminates the need for a complex translation device while maintaining a high-energy-density...

A zone plate produced by a computer and having a binary structure that can be etched into a chromium or quartz layer. It...

A device for which the output electric field is linearly proportional to the input electric field, and no new wavelengths or...

A handheld, light-sensitive device that is used with a display console to directly change, measure or erase the visual...

Characteristic of an acousto-optic modulator, defined by the overlap integral of the incident light and sound field...

A multidimensional array of values that is commonly used in programming to describe a time series of image data. Each...

A technique developed to measure the molecular weight of macromolecules by analyzing the spontaneous fluctuations that occur...

A specific form of phase shifting interferometry - commonly referred to as multiple wavelength phase shifting interferometry...

Devices in which the lasing medium is a vapor of metal atoms or ions, sometimes mixed with another gas. Metal vapor lasers...

Laboratory experiments that focus on demonstrating new capabilities of a certain technology or device, usually without...

A device that determines the lens shape in the cutting or edging phase of fabrication. It also is used to denote the...

Phototheranostics, a portmanteau of "photo" (light), "therapy," and "diagnostics," refers to an emerging field that combines...

In detectors, the ability to switch on and off electronically, thus producing the effect of a mechanical shutter.

In a series of amplifiers, amplification by each of the preceding output.

The plot that expresses a reaction rate vs. the reciprocal of absolute temperature. Often used to describe the thermal...

A toric lens generated by rotating a specific cross section about an axis beyond its area and used in the formation of...

A wedge in a rangefinder or heightfinder used to displace the image produced by one telescope so that it coincides with that...

The tendency of charge carriers to spiral about an axis in a direction identical to that of an applied magnetic field that...

A catadioptric lens assembly consisting of a Maksutov corrector and a spherical primary mirror.

The minimum electrical current input needed to initiate lasing.

A photographic enlarger with a fixed negative plane and a fixed paper plane, often using a roll of paper that is advanced...

An intensified charge-coupled device (ICCD) camera is an advanced imaging device that combines the capabilities of both an...

Biometrics refers to the automated recognition of individuals based on their physiological or behavioral characteristics....

A microdisplay is a miniature electronic display technology that is designed to project visual information onto a small...

In computerized industrial process control, the element that determines the choice and sequence of operations dependent on...

Optoacoustic, or photoacoustic, refers to a phenomenon and related techniques that involve the generation of acoustic waves...

A laser with a gain medium consisting of an organic dye, which is carbon-based. The dye is mixed with a solvent, allowing...

A high-resolution imaging instrument that can detect and measure the positions of individual atoms on the surface of a...

The distribution of one signal to more than one location. In a digital computer, it refers to the number of outputs that can...

The simplest, most inexpensive type of camera, which is shaped as an oblong or square box, containing the simplest lens,...

A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....

A polarizing prism consisting of two calcite prisms cemented such that they deviate the two emerging beams (which are...

A special-purpose polarimeter having a scale calibrated directly in the concentration of sugar in the test solution.

The value of the distance of distinct vision, minimum focusing distance or near point, divided by the focal length of the...

A free-electron laser (FEL) is a type of laser that generates coherent, high-intensity electromagnetic radiation by using a...

A swept-source laser, also known as a wavelength-swept laser, is a type of laser that rapidly and continuously changes its...

Modification of a system to provide for a linear transfer characteristic from an input to an output device. A circuit for...

The surface of an optical fiber that is used as a reference when joining optical fibers. Although the outermost cladding is...

Autofluorescence refers to the natural emission of fluorescence exhibited by certain biological structures or molecules when...

A measure of image quality produced by an optical system. May be specified in terms of cycles per millimeter, referencing a...

A family of specialized instruments used by ophthalmologists and optometrists to study a patient's eyes and prescribe...

A prism is a geometric optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. It is typically a solid, transparent...

The term "Rydberg atom" refers to an atom in a highly excited state where one or more of its electrons are in a Rydberg...

A display standard no longer in use and originally defined for IBM PCs, with 640 3 480 pixels in 16 colors and a 4:3 aspect...

The angle between the light input propagation vector and the optical axis of an optical fiber or fiber bundle.

A method of producing magnified images by x-rays. The specimen is placed close to a point source of x-rays; the...

A unique glass made up of nano-structured materials to create millimeter sized monolithic glass space-variant polarization...

Virtual histology refers to the use of digital technology and computational methods to simulate or recreate histological...

Metabolic imaging refers to the visualization and quantification of metabolic processes within living organisms, tissues, or...

Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) is an international standard for medical imaging created by both the...

One of a number of nuclides characterized by an identity between their mass numbers, but each having a different atomic...

1.) Generally, the electromagnetic spectrum within the wavelength region extending from the vacuum ultraviolet at 40 nm to...

Relative to the Cotton-Mouton effect, the magnetic birefringence constant that, when multiplied by pathlength and the square...

That part of the infrared spectrum from about 30 to 1000 µm.

Optical elements that use diffraction to control wavefronts. Diffractive optical elements include diffraction gratings,...

An old name for the rotating arm moving about an axis of rotation over a divided circle used to measure angles. Now the term...

Photobleaching is a phenomenon in which the fluorescence of a fluorophore (a fluorescent molecule or dye) is permanently...

A technique used in photolithography of computer chips to compensate for errors caused by the proximity effect, which...

A method of synthesis for crystals such as KTP. The process involves the use of a high-temperature solution called flux to...

A camera tube widely used in television broadcasting. It consists of three sections within a single vacuum envelope. 1. A...

A diagram that uses special symbols called logic symbols to represent the detailed functioning of electronic logic circuits....

A measurement technique used to determine the spatial distribution profile of an electrical or optical quantity of interest...

In image processing, a morphology operator in which a structuring element or probe of a particular shape is moved over the...

A rotating disc that holds several lenses of differing focal length about a diameter. Used to switch lenses in a system...

Surface analysis by means of photon induced electron emission. PEM methods provide high lateral resolution of the observed...

An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...

A television format with enhanced vertical resolution (400 lines as compared with the standard 330) that, unlike...

A spectrograph in which the refracted beam returns almost along the path traveled by the incident beam, and is brought to a...

Ablation applied to polymers and chemical solids. Process of material removal that minimizes edge damage but will not heat...

Complex devices, often involving a computer, in which a photograph is scanned by a point of light, the amplitude of the...

A computer architecture used in parallel processing whereby all the processing elements are operating under their own local...

A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images...

1. A polariscope consisting of a Savart plate and a tourmaline plate analyzer, and used to produce parallel color fringes by...

In micropositioning systems, motion (most frequently undesired) about the Z-axis.

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...

Reflectance spectroscopy is a technique used to analyze the reflective properties of materials across various wavelengths of...

A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light...

An image intensifier that consists of an evacuated tube with a large input phosphor screen at one end. The phosphor screen...

Nanoparticle photonic resonator absorption microscopy is a microscopy technique that combines the principles of photonic...

A method used to generate graphics within a computer system. Rather than dots or lines, fractal graphics work with...

The optical process, following grinding, that puts a highly finished, smooth and apparently amorphous surface on a lens or a...

The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum divided by the speed of light in the medium.

An image that is not immediately recognizable but scrambled.

An optical gate typically refers to a device or system that controls the transmission of light, allowing it to pass through...

The point on a cutting line that will become the geometrical center of the cut lens.

The element that resembles a lightweight metal, but when very pure, has a very high electrical resistance and is transparent...

MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...

A type of wide-angle lens that has an angular field above 140° and that exhibits barrel distortion. The most commonly...

Color sensitivity extended to cover the entire visible spectrum out to the red.

A linear computation or algorithm performed on a selected series in the form of an input signal that produces a new series...

A spectrophotometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the intensity of light at various wavelengths in the...

A development aimed at extending the life of a tungsten filament. The iodine vapor in the lamp envelope combines with the...

An electronic device consisting of a semiconductor material, generally germanium or silicon, and used for rectification,...

The logarithmic method of determining emulsion speeds developed by the German standards organization, Deutscher...

In an optical waveguide, that dispersion attributable to the variation of refractive index profile with wavelength. The...

1. A strainmeter capable of measuring the change in the relationship between two reference points, provided that the points...

LiFi, short for light fidelity, is a wireless communication technology that utilizes visible light or infrared light to...

Electromagnetic radiation detectable by the eye, ranging in wavelength from about 400 to 750 nm. In photonic applications...

Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a...

A precisely defined series of steps that describes how a computer performs a task.

A sensor generally used for infrared imaging. It consists of two chambers separated by a thin, blackened membrane. An...

A wide-angle lens is a type of camera lens that has a shorter focal length than a standard or normal lens, allowing it to...

A laser that generates a succession of pulses at a high enough repetition rate to appear continuous. The pump source is...

A device utilizing an electron beam for the observation and recording of submicroscopic samples with the aid of photographic...

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....

The amount of spatial noise detected equivalent to the output emission location of the giving source.

1. The decrease of the absorption (or gain) coefficient of a medium near some transition frequency when the power of the...

A group of single emitter laser diodes, usually arranged vertically or horizontally with respect to each other. The power...

A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...

A term referring to various processes for forming visible images outside of a camera to be photographed on ordinary film....

Photon flow created by imaging of light into a detector array; IPD is the electrical signal used by the image processor in a...

The capability of the spatial distributions of incident and reflected flux to interchange completely without alteration of...

In television, the number of individual pixels that can be distinguished in a horizontal scanning line; also called...

A composite derived from aluminum alloy powder and silicon carbide, used as an optical substrate in air- and spacecraft...

A method used in surface quality testing for accurate positioning and rotation of metal spheres about an axis or fixed point...

Participates in a reaction only in the presence of light and radiant energy. Besides 3D printing, photoreactive agents also...

An imaging device analogous to a drum scanner, but operating at greater speeds; it uses a row of sensors to traverse an...

An optical compensator similar to the Babinet compensator, but which produces a phase-change consistent throughout its...

Technique for measuring the volume bulk of materials as they move along a conveyor with an accuracy of better than 1...

An optical switch that controls conduction paths into and out of a junction in fiber optic and integrated optical circuits.

A nonoptical surface, within lenses and lens mounts, that contributes largely to flare by reflecting light into the image...

In computer graphics, the coordinated two-dimensional or three-dimensional area of increased resolution where graphics...

The condition in a multimode optical waveguide in which the relative power distribution among the propagating modes is...

The method by which photographic film is scanned by an electron beam. One technique uses the uniform light of a television...

A group of frequencies or wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum which exhibits resonance or energy contributions near...

End-fire coupling refers to a method of coupling energy into or out of a waveguide, transmission line, or antenna, where the...

A spectrum formed by radiation whose energy values of the property being measured cluster about at least one discrete value,...

The liquid used in microscopy to fill the space between the high-power objective lens and the microscope slide in order to...

A fiber optic imaging bundle is a specialized optical device composed of multiple optical fibers bundled together. Each...

Laser peening is a surface enhancement technique used to improve the mechanical properties of materials, particularly...

The field of view (FOV) refers to the extent of the observable world or the visible area that can be seen at any given...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small, single-stranded RNA molecules, typically consisting of about 19 to 24 nucleotides,...

Average wavelength usually determined for light-transmitting devices by taking a weighted average for each wavelength of the...

Imaging radar that increases the sweep of its along-track (or azimuth) capacity by measuring not only the time delay of the...

An organizational method used in optical design computer programs. The technique produces one number (merit function) to...

Multiple exposures of holograms, one for each position of a vibrating image, that are used for vibration analysis and that...

Photographing of terrain on the ground and objects in the air by cameras mounted in aircraft; utilized in satellites,...

Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free...

The method that, by measuring the absorption along an atmospheric path at wavelengths ranging from two to a continuum, can...

A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...

A photon sieve is an optical device used in the field of optics and imaging. It's designed to focus and shape light,...

Mathematically defined as the product of etendue (or throughput) and the square of the refractive index, the optical extent...

A process used to detect minute gravitational fields and to display images from objects by means of radiated gravitational...

A grating beamsplitter is an optical device that utilizes the principles of diffraction to split a beam of light into...

A photomicrographic recording technique that utilizes dark-field illumination to render an image of an object having a...

A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic...

An endoscope is a medical device used for visualizing and examining the interior of hollow organs, body cavities, or...

A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz...

A lens that is symmetrical and designed to work between 1:1 and about 4:1. It covers a field of about ±20° at f/8...

A ferroelectric polycrystalline ceramic material used in optical memories for computers and as a piezoelectric transducer.

For a single-mode fiber, the measurement of the irradiance distribution at the fiber's end face.

Modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) is a technique used in the fabrication of optical fibers. It is a specialized form...

A telescope with a concave paraboloidal objective mirror and a small plane (diagonal) mirror that reflects rays from the...

Holographic tomography is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and tomography to provide three-dimensional...

Extensive data storage in the form of bits, with the use of high-resolution photographic materials and optics, and generally...

A type of laser welding that produces short-duration vapor pockets without buildup of heat in the part, useful for parts...

Technique that provides two stereographic views of an object that are larger than the object itself, by means of mutually...

An instrument used to test lenses by utilizing the optical transfer function. It consists of a HeNe laser, a beamsplitter...

The pulse-to-pulse fluctuations in power distribution among modes of a Fabry-Perot laser, which can result in...

The constant outward flow of weakly magnetized plasma from the sun that is deflected by the magnetic field of the earth and,...

The deposition of a metallic coating, usually nickel, on a component by chemical means rather than by electroplating; the...

Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples....

A device similar to the ordinary spectrophotometer but containing particular modifications to provide for the comparison of...

A chart, either printed on paper or prepared photographically on glass plates or film, that consists of 3-bar resolution...

The term light field refers to the spatial distribution of light rays traveling in all directions through a given space. It...

The point at which short-wavelength transmission is cut off.

Pertaining to electromagnetic radiation, with the contributions at all wavelengths of interest weighted equally.

A holographic grating is a type of diffraction grating that is produced using holographic recording techniques. It consists...

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a non-invasive imaging technique used in medical and scientific fields to capture...

Black and white film that is sensitive to green, blue and violet light but not to red light.

A photometric instrument having two prisms clamped in optical contact to produce a photometric field with an acute dividing...

An optical coupling device that uses light to bridge the gap between incompatible wire communications systems. It contains...

An ocular having two planoconvex lenses that are formed from similar glass and that are separated by a space equal to half...

A measure of the closeness with which an optical image is capable of resembling the original object. The factors that affect...

A near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the...

Motion of a fiber into and out of the ferrule. This effect is often caused by changes in temperature.

Rayleigh scattering is a phenomenon that occurs when light waves interact with particles or molecules that are much smaller...

Integrated photonics is a field of study and technology that involves the integration of optical components, such as lasers,...

Extremely small organic and inorganic systems of molecules within a substance. In general, systems are colloidal size in...

Coating carried out in a sealed chamber evacuated by a mechanical pump in series with an oil diffusion pump to a pressure...

That region of the electromagnetic spectrum to which the retina is sensitive and by which the eye sees. It extends from...

A small bulb containing a conducting gas, an arc being formed between a metal ring and a tiny zirconium electrode near the...

Phototoxicity refers to the harmful effects caused by exposure to light, particularly intense or ultraviolet (UV) light, on...

A single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) is a specialized type of photodetector designed to detect extremely weak optical...

In astronomy, the main lobe of an antenna pattern that has a small angular extent in two mutually perpendicular directions....

The rate of diminution of average optical power and the sum of the scattering and absorption coefficients.

The process by which the raster beam in a video tube is cut off during the retracing and sync periods.

A small incandescent lamp whose intense beam is focused on the optical soundtrack of a motion picture film. The soundtrack...

The attribute of visual experience that can be described as having quantitatively specifiable dimensions of hue, saturation,...

A fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) is a type of gyroscope that uses the interference of light waves to detect changes in...

A filter that transmits infrared and ultraviolet but is opaque to visible radiation.

A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...

A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of...

A method of measuring flow velocity by seeding the flow with neutrally buoyant particles and using a pulsed laser to...

The use of a specialized optical microscope designed to provide a more three-dimensional view of a sample. Stereomicroscopy...

An instrument that measures several optical parameters, such as optical power and wavelength, with a single measurement...

An infrared imaging device composed of a detector array and readout electronics. It may include a cryogenic cooling system....

The addition to the information signal in communications of redundant bits that enable the originally encoded message to be...

Laser light show effects equipment including optics and mechanical devices that reflect, position or distort the laser beam,...

The ratio of emitted power to input power.

A spectrometer or autocollimator used to measure prism angles.

An infrared light source is a device that emits light in the infrared spectrum, which lies beyond the visible spectrum of...

Also known as transverse mode. The configurations of energy storage, relative to the structure of a laser resonator, that...

In a telephoto lens, the ratio of the overall length to the focal length of the lens. It is generally about 0.8 to 0.9 in...

A reflecting prism that is rhomboidal in shape. It has two parallel transmitting faces, and two parallel reflecting faces;...

An optical assembly refers to a collection of optical components that are carefully arranged and aligned to perform a...

A precision lens designed to convert the plane wavefront output of an interferometer to a spherical wavefront for the...

Complex devices, often involving a computer, in which a photograph is scanned by a point of light, the amplitude of the...

A light filter that equally decreases the intensity of all wavelengths of light without altering the relative spectral...

Data communications network in a clearly defined geographical location, and extending no more than a few miles in length. It...

In vivo is a Latin term that translates to "within the living." In scientific contexts, particularly in biology and...

The base used to hold an astronomical telescope. It may be either altazimuth, with horizontal and vertical axes of rotation,...

A flexible display refers to a type of electronic visual display that is designed to be bendable, foldable, or rollable,...

A type of laser welding of thin materials using a defocused or low-power carbon dioxide laser beam. The energy is absorbed...

A lumen is a unit of measurement used to quantify the amount of luminous flux, which is the perceived power of light. In...

A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or...

A filter possessing one transmission band that extends from a cutoff frequency other than zero to frequency at infinity.

The material lost during a laser cutting or machining operation.

An amplifying device with a wide tuning range in which an electron gun sends a beam of electrons into a slow-wave structure....

Computer numerically controlled (CNC) grinding is a manufacturing process that utilizes computerized controls and precision...

Also known as a gray body; a nonselective radiator is a thermal radiator that has a constant spectral emissivity with...

Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level....

An optical source that has a luminous distribution that is uniform for all directions.

The lowest excitation power level at which a laser's output is mainly the result of stimulated emission rather than...

An aberration that remains after primary color is corrected. Primary color causes the back focus of a lens to vary with...

The perception of visual stimuli at the left and right outer boundaries of the visual field.

In colorimetry, the phenomenon in which spectrally different radiations produce the same color sensation for a given...

A method of scanning in which a frame transfer device produces a continuous video image of a moving object by means of a...

Controlled beam technology that introduces beams of sunlight through holes in a roof that are relayed throughout the...

In the dye laser, the molecule that takes out energy from the triplet state during collisions between the dye and quencher...

An instrument used to determine the absolute or relative scatter levels of optical surfaces.

The point at which infrared transmission is cut off.

A pixel-based computer graphics system that simulates the tools of an artist.

A filter, partially opaque to near-ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation, that may be made by exposing and processing...

A photon jet is a narrow, highly collimated beam of light that is formed when light interacts with small dielectric...

A planar photocathode and a planar phosphor screen mounted in a close-spaced parallel configuration in an evacuated...

A cathode-ray tube, driven by a computer, that receives impulses of information from the computer and displays it in a...

A device that responds to incident light but does not generate light.

A metal coil or coils wrapped around the outside of the neck of a cathode-ray tube. Current passing through the coils...

Charged frozen pellets that are rapidly bombarded with a focused high-power laser to form a dense plasma that can be heated...

A spheric lens, also known as a spherical lens, is a type of optical lens with at least one surface that is part of a...

A type of matched filter that responds only to the phase of incoming light; the output has a much greater intensity than...

A measure of the ability of a photographic system to record fine detail. Usually stated in terms of cycles per millimeter on...

A process of forming ions within a given molecular species by incident laser light. The molecular species may remain intact,...

A visual display used with a computer to give access to the many elements of data as an array of points. With the display...

The study and photographing of microscope specimens in ultraviolet light; using an optical microscope containing fluorite...

Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide...

A fiber optic device that uses a HeNe laser, beamsplitter, monochromator and photomultiplier to detect trace levels of...

Fresnel reflection refers to the reflection of light at the interface between two different media with different refractive...

The process of perforating a silicon or ceramic substrate with a series of tiny holes along which it will break. Nd:YAG or...

A camera used in scintillation recording to make a visible record of the distribution and relative concentration of...

A femtosecond laser is a type of laser that emits ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of femtoseconds,...

Computer output in the form of pictorial representation (graphs, charts, drawings, etc.) that is displayed visually.

The dispersion attributable to the wavelength dependence of the refractive index of the material used in any optical...

A measure of the total light passed by a shutter during an exposure, compared with the light that could be passed by an...

A photosensitive device used to optically scan and read character data (numbers, letters etc.) and input this data into a...

A type of electroluminescent display that will record and maintain an irradiated image on its phosphor screen, provided a DC...

Combining adjacent pixels into one larger pixel, resulting in increased sensitivity and lower resolution, or, in image...

A source of light will not cast a distinct shadow of an interfering, opaque object, but will cast a shadow having two parts:...

Single molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) is a group of super-resolution microscopy techniques that surpass the...

Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the...

A transparent powdered solid immersed in a liquid or plastic of similar refractive index but widely different dispersion;...

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive neuroimaging technique that measures changes in hemoglobin...

Hyperspectral imaging is an advanced imaging technique that captures and processes information from across the...

The term half bandwidth (HBW) generally refers to the width of a spectral band or frequency range at half of its maximum...

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to obtain high-resolution,...

In biaxial crystals, the principal angle that bisects the smaller angle between the optic axes.

Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nanolithography technique used for fabricating nanoscale patterns on a substrate. It is a...

Also called sine wave response and contrast transfer function. The modulation transfer function is the ratio of the...

An embossed or marked disk, constructed out of a transparent material and used with a camera system to soften an image.

An apparatus, designed for use with a camera, that is used to rapidly open the path from lens to film, to maintain the...

The distribution of electromagnetic fields in a given area. The units are volts per meter, watts per meter squared and...

A sheet of plastic material containing microscopic crystals of herapathite or some other similar substance that transmits...

The computer module whose circuitry interprets instructions and guides the actions of the peripherals. Also known as the...

An imaging process, similar to specific Doppler mapping radar techniques, that utilizes a laser, an optical imaging system,...

A magnetometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the strength and/or direction of a magnetic field. It can detect...

A robotic process commonly employed by automakers that enables high-speed and flexible production throughput by using...

The visual perception of contrasting forms is more difficult if the forms have the same luminance but different...

Diffraction efficiency is a measure of how effectively a diffractive optical element (DOE) or diffraction grating directs...

A pulse having extremely short duration, about 10-13 to 10-10 s, that is produced by mode locking of wide-bandwidth lasers,...

A microscope objective designed to be used without liquid between the cover glass and the objective, or, in the case of...

A type of x-ray that is capable of deep penetration; its wavelength is about 10-8 cm.

A powerful and flexible machine-learning approach that can be used in machine vision to help solve difficult problems....

A technique for measuring fiber attenuation or distortion by performing two transmission measurements. One is at the output...

A device that controls the output of a television receiver's horizontal oscillator.

A confocal resonator, also known as a confocal cavity or confocal laser resonator, is a type of optical resonator...

A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated...

Ophthalmology is a branch of medicine that focuses on the anatomy, physiology, and diseases of the eyes and visual system....

A camera system capable of producing microfilm copies of computerized data presented on a screen.

The testing by hypothesizing a likely crystal structure, computing a test x-ray diffraction pattern and comparing this to...

A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...

In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit...

A two-sided mirror suspended by a pendulum mechanism. An autocollimator set normal to such a mirror surface will, by...

A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...

A discharge lamp filled with deuterium to produce high-intensity ultraviolet radiation for use in spectroscopic analysis.

Observed when alterations in the luminous sterance at the contour of an object create the illusion of the outer zones...

A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection...

Quantum-enhanced metrology refers to the use of quantum mechanics principles and techniques to enhance the precision and...

Deep learning is a subset of machine learning that involves the use of artificial neural networks to model and solve complex...

A medical imaging method in which gamma camera heads rotate about the patient to detect radionuclides, enabling physicians...

A gas, such as oxygen, that improves the speed and efficiency of a laser cutter or welder when applied to the work surface,...

A television system that does not broadcast television signals but transmits them over a closed circuit.

Term synonymous with refractive index liquid, but related more to tank or chamber immersion of crystals, fibers, lenses,...

A spatial light modulator (SLM) is an optical device that modulates or manipulates the amplitude, phase, or polarization of...

The phenomenon that can render an optical resonator the equivalent of a semiconductor flip-flop. A bistable device will...

Volumetric imaging refers to the capture, visualization, and analysis of three-dimensional (3D) information from a volume of...

Technique using a fiber optic assembly to illuminate an opaque object and transmit an image back from it without a lens...

Liquid crystals are a state of matter that exhibits properties intermediate between those of conventional liquids and solid...

MTF analysis/measurement equipment refers to instruments and tools used to measure and analyze the modulation transfer...

A closed-loop system that is constantly adjusted in response to input signals generated within the system.

Optical glass that possesses a refractive index equal to or less than 1.5, and an Abbe number that ranges from 62 to about...

Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the...

Photogrammetry is a technique used to obtain accurate three-dimensional measurements of objects and environments through the...

A light-tight box that receives light from an object or scene and focuses it to form an image on a light-sensitive material...

Light present in the environment around a detecting or interpreting device, especially a machine vision system, and...

The photographic recording of data, in binary form, for storage in memory. Exposure is achieved by a cathode-ray tube or by...

The maximum distance at which the stereoscopic effect may be observed. With respect to the unaided human eye, it has been...

A parallel plate of glass in such a position that the refracted and reflected rays of incident parallel light are mutually...

A time-to-amplitude converter (TAC) is an electronic circuit that converts a time interval between two events into an...

A means of adjusting the sharpness of an image automatically, with a sensor for estimating distance or contrast and a drive...

An optical test table made up of two outer layers or "skins'' bonded to either side of a honeycomblike core, usually of...

A device that provides simple and reliable laser power and energy measurement. Essentially a heat flux sensor producing an...

A fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna (FCPA) is a type of optoelectronic device that combines a photoconductive antenna...

An image that is reversed contour or inside-out.

A technique, involving spectrophotometry in the ultraviolet, that is designed to determine the colors of thin-layer...

A shutter actuated by means other than mechanical springs for timings on the order of nanoseconds. The shutter is used in...

A lens that exhibits spherical aberration when used at large aperture settings, and that forms an image with a slightly...

A single number, defined by the computer program or the user that expresses the performance of an optical system. Also known...

A furnace used to heat glass materials. It may be a small laboratory-type furnace for small-scale experiments or large...

The naturally occurring crystalline form of silicon dioxide. It is slightly birefringent and exhibits rotary dispersion of...

1. A single unit in a device for changing radiant energy to electrical energy or for controlling current flow in a circuit....

A ground-based navigation beacon that emits pulsed signals which are picked up by aircraft making an instrument (blind)...

In an optical waveguide, a ray for which geometric optics would predict total internal reflection at the core boundary, but...

A device to modulate spatially a collimated coherent beam of light with input data in optical data processing. It uses a...

The unit solid angle subtended at the center of a sphere by an area on its surface equivalent to the square of the radius;...

Used in computer design for optical systems with common parts and different applications.

A soft, malleable, stable rare-earth element. Holmium laser systems are used in surgical procedures involving the cutting...

An instrument similar to the spectroheliograph, but having a scanning method that is performed by a pair of rapidly...

A satellite-borne remote sensing device capable of transmitting images at 10 and 20 m resolution from an altitude of 830 km,...

Fine lines, wires or threads used in the focal plane of many optical instruments to point out and locate particular objects...

A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light...

Histology is the branch of biology and medicine that involves the study of the microscopic structure of tissues and organs...

The use of computer analysis in the calculation of diffraction patterns for information on the design of optical systems. In...

A type of interferometer in which two coils of optical fiber are arranged so that light from a single source travels...

The production of rough glass lens blanks that are pressed while red-hot to the approximate size and shape of the finished...

The area of optics that deals with the propagation of Gaussian laser beams in free space, or any general medium - i.e....

Convex is an adjective used to describe a surface or shape that curves outward, bulges, or has a rounded and outwardly...

Total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy is an advanced fluorescence microscopy technique that leverages the...

Transmittance of a stable solution is an exponential function of the concentration of the absorbing solute.

A design for bent crystal monochromators in which spacing is constant along any circular arc terminating at the two foci and...

A computer-generated, phase-and-amplitude, off-axis hologram made by a multi-exposure technique that uses three computer...

A closely spaced series of well-known chemicals having a refractive index lying between 1.33 for water and 1.95 for a...

A prism resembling a Nicol prism but having faces normal to the axis and the two parts divided by a glycerine film. Also...

The superimposition of a pilot object on each hologram. The fixed relative position of the scanning and pilot beam during...

Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet radiation with shorter wavelengths than those of visible...

An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is...

The determination of axially symmetric and asymmetric refractive-index distributions by use of interferometry carried out on...

A snapshot representation of the final image created by a computer program.

The photographic image of a thin specimen having a radioactive isotope that, formed through contact between the specimen and...

A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all...

Thermography is a technique that involves the use of an infrared imaging device, called a thermal camera or infrared camera,...

Material hardness scale that is used to characterize the scratch resistance of various materials. This surface hardness...

Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically...

The transparent front layer of the eye. Light entering the eye is refracted (converged) by the outer surface of the cornea.

A color center laser whose output is coupled to an external control laser cavity and then fed back to the main laser cavity...

A chemical detection technique used to measure molecules that have a magnetic dipole moment. The analysis is directed to...

A fast, wide-angle lens used in television and photographic cameras, with excellent overall correction, but subject to...

Minimum object distance, often abbreviated as MOD, refers to the closest distance at which a camera lens or optical system...

Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) is a mechanism describing the transfer of energy between two closely spaced...

A scale on an optical instrument that indicates the condition of focus. May indicate the distance to the object or diopter...