Daniel C. McCarthy, Senior Editor/Special ProjectsSoftware programming is a tedious, thankless job. Bill Gates notwithstanding, it isn't likely that the title "software developer" will become sexy any time soon. The most programmers can hope for are tools that will make their job easier. Terry Brennan, a senior scientist at the Optical...Read full articleRelated content from Photonics MediaARTICLESTerahertz Heterodyne Detection with Graphene Could Power Space TelescopesResearchers at Chalmers University of Technology have demonstrated a terahertz (THz) detector made from graphene for use in next-generation astronomy detectors. A near zero-electron scenario, called...EuroPhotonics Winter 2019 IssuePhotomultiplier Tubes from Brown Team Will Be the 'Eyes' of New Dark Matter DetectorBrown University researchers have assembled two arrays of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) to serve as the “eyes” for the LUX-ZEPLIN (L-Z) dark matter detector, which will begin its search...Photonics.com 1/25/2019Infrared Detector Improves Night-Vision Capabilities at Room TemperatureResearchers at the University of Central Florida (UCF) have devised a strategy for uncooled, tunable, multispectral infrared (IR) detection. The team showed that room-temperature photodetection using...Photonics.com 10/25/2019Brookhaven Completes LSST’s Digital Sensor ArrayScientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have completed a 3.2-gigapixel sensor array for the camera that will be used in the Large Synoptic Survey...Photonics Spectra November 2019 IssuePRODUCTSDiscover the Alvium Camera Series!Industrial machine vision and embedded vision merge with Allied Vision’s innovative camera platform, the Alvium Camera Series. Alvium is based on an innovative platform that delivers a full...Promoted Content September 2019 IssueOptic Design SoftwareOpticStudio 19.8 software from Zemax Inc. includes high-yield optimization, a capability that enables engineers to select best as-built performance for higher manufacturing yields at a reduced cost....Photonics.com 11/18/2019Quad DetectorsPyreos Ltd.’s TO-39 quad detectors are designed for multi-gas and flame detection. The devices benefit from 5× larger pixel areas than their previous range and deliver a higher...Photonics Spectra September 2019 IssueFixed Focal LensThe M112FM wide-angle machine vision lens from Tamron Co. Ltd. is designed for high-resolution sensors. The M112FM fixed-focal lens supports the latest large-format imaging sensors up to 1 to...Vision Spectra Autumn 2019 IssuePHOTONICS HANDBOOK ARTICLESAdaptive Optics: Taming Atmospheric Turbulence: For more than three centuries, the Earth’s atmosphere has frustrated astronomers. The layer of gases that we breathe also distorts the images formed by telescopes. This means that conventional telescopes of more than a few centimeters in diameter cannot reach the resolution limit set by their optics.To Isaac Newton the problem was clear, and in 1704 he realized the effects of atmospheric turbulence on image formation. Just as heat waves shimmering above a hot patch of ground can distort our...Photonics HandbookDetectors: CCDs for Life-Science Applications: The CCD camera is becoming the imaging method of choice in biological laboratories for its resolution, versatility and ease of use. Choosing the best CCD for a given application, however, requires knowing how basic chip parameters affect performance.Since their invention in the late 1960s, charge-coupled devices, also called CCDs, have found widespread use in imaging applications. Electronic cameras based on CCD technology are used in...Photonics HandbookDetectors: The Charge Injection Alternative: Charge-injection device (CID) technology provides a means to convert optical signals from 185 nm to 1100 nm to electronic charges that can be read out as a video signal or processed via computer. The CID imagers also are capable of directly (or indirectly) converting particle photons including electrons, ions, x-rays and other forms of ionizing radiation to measurable levels of electronic charge.Charged-injection device imagers are metal-oxide semiconductor (MOS) detectors that can be fabricated using PMOS, NMOS and CMOS integrated circuit technology, and may be configured as a...Photonics HandbookNanopositioning: A Step Ahead: It is almost a cliché among students of creativity that innovation occurs at the intersection of fields. Since nanopositioning is a discipline that has enabled swiftly evolving application arenas as diverse as materials science, genomics, photonics, defense, biophysics, and semiconductors, it’s unsurprising that its pace of innovation is nothing short of blistering in recent years.By its original definition, a nanopositioning device is a mechanism capable of repeatedly delivering motion in increments as small as one nanometer. Lately demands from industry and research have...Photonics HandbookWHITEPAPERSCloud-Based, AI Deep Learning Enabled Handheld Raman for Mixture AnalysisCloudMinds XI™ is the world’s first cloud-based, AI deep learning enabled handheld Raman spectrometer. Being integrated with a smartphone, its operation is fully automated with an intuitive...Photonics.com 5/31/2019When to Choose HOT MWIR Over Uncooled LWIRCooled midwave infrared (MWIR) cameras have long held a tactical advantage over uncooled longwave infrared (LWIR) cameras in many airborne and ground-based missions. But while cooled MWIR cameras are...Photonics.com 9/1/2019The Fast Lane to Embedded VisionSensor Modules are small imaging solutions used to easily integrate customized vision technologies into machines and devices that allow them to see. Developers of robots, drones, IoT, consumer...Photonics.com 6/11/2019The Most Important Camera Parameters for Aerial ImagingSelecting components for an aerial imaging payload does not have to be complicated. Although the right camera choice is crucial for an aerial imaging system, the key to a success is to focus on the...Photonics.com 5/1/2018WEBINARSMicro-Spectroscopy: Enabling Research From Novel Nano-Devices To Clinical DiagnosisMicro-spectroscopy is an ever developing modality for new and exciting research in the areas of nano-technology and bioscience. This webinar will look at modular approaches to microspectroscopy and...Photonics.com 3/24/2015Advancements in Precision Motion Control for Electro-Optical Manufacturing and Laser Materials ProcessingWith a focus on high-throughput/high-yield positioning and microrobotic solutions for leading-edge manufacturing, Scott Jordan and Matt Price from Physik Instrumente (PI) will present the latest...Photonics.com 1/22/2020An Introduction to Back Illuminated sCMOS CamerasScientific CMOS (sCMOS) cameras are increasingly becoming detectors of choice for a range of quantitative imaging and spectroscopy applications, from astronomy to biological sciences. This webinar,...Photonics.com 2/14/2017Protective Coatings Extend Optics LifetimesPlease download the above “associated file” for a pdf copy of this webinar. From military airborne applications to harsh industrial uses, optics can be subjected to considerable...Photonics.com 10/10/2018PHOTONICS DICTIONARY TERMSalignment laserA laser, usually employing helium-neon or other gases as the active medium, used for alignment in industrial applications.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009terahertz radiationElectromagnetic radiation with frequencies between 300 GHz and 10 THz, and existing between regions of the electromagnetic spectrum that are typically classified as the far-infrared and microwave...EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009legacy fiberOlder fiber optic cable that may not be suitable for state-of-the-art applications and that is difficult for suppliers to sell.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009line scan cameraAn optical instrument used for quality control purposes that builds a 2D image of an object out of a series of one-line slices of it. Common applications include the inspections of webs, such as...EDU.photonics.com 6/28/2017MEDIARobot Touch - LIGHT MATTERS 10.07.2015For all their precision of movement, we can't always count on robots to handle objects with care. But fiber optic sensors could give machines a more human sense of touch. See how – this month on...Photonics.com 10/7/2015Photonics West 2017 Ushers in the New Year - LIGHT MATTERS 02.2017Photonics Media followed the photons all the way to San Francisco earlier this month for SPIE’s Photonics West 2017. The year truly begins with this event for many in the industry, as it is a symbol...Photonics.com 2/23/2017Optics and Photonics at the Hub of the Industry - LIGHT MATTERS 10.2017Tune into this month's edition of Light Matters for some of the highlights from Optifab 2017, as distributors and buyers from all over the world met in the photonics industry hub of Rochester, New...Photonics.com 10/26/2017Light Matters Extra: Weird and Strange: Quantum Photonics - 03.2018In this month's Light Matters Extra, we take you to the Quantum Photonics Laboratory at MIT run by Dr. Dirk Englund. Dr. Englund's group, the Quantum Photonics Group, is made up of postdocs and...Photonics.com 3/29/2018PHOTONICS BUYERS' GUIDE CATEGORIESAstronomical MirrorsAn astronomical mirror is generally a mirror used instead of lenses in astronomical and space applications. It is not limited in size, does not absorb UV or IR radiation, and is usually made aspheric...Infrared DetectorsAn infrared detector is a device used to detect radiation from the infrared region. It may be a thermal detector, such as a bolometer, thermocouple or Golay cell, or it may be a solid-state photon...Photodiode DetectorsCapacitor Charging Power SuppliesCOMPANIESLaCroix Precision OpticsOptics that Defend, Build, Cure and Discover The LaCroix name is synonymous with quality precision optics. Since 1947, three generations of family leadership have placed LaCroix Precision Optics...Photonics Buyers' GuideTeledyne Judson TechnologiesTeledyne Judson Technologies (TJT) is a global leader for IR sensors from the Visible to VLWIR spectrum. Two-dimensional FPAs (InGaAs, InSb, and MCT) and Integrated Dewar Cooler Assemblies (IDCAs)...Photonics Buyers' GuideDiffraction LimitedDiffraction Limited develops, manufactures, and markets scientific imaging products under the SBIG and Cyanogen Imaging brands. Our cooled camera product lines include the compact STF series,...Photonics Buyers' GuideChroma Technology Corp.Chroma Technology manufactures high performance optical interference filters using sputtering and ion beam coating technologies. We specialize in precise spectral control, and can provide filters...Photonics Buyers' Guide