Photonics Dictionary

A gas made up of electrons and ions.

A plasma accelerator is a type of particle accelerator that uses electric fields and magnetic fields to accelerate charged particles, typically electrons or ions, by exploiting the motion of charged...

The use of a plasma to induce the formation of oxides in the production of graded-index optical fibers.

A type of flat panel display made up of a layer of gas between two glass plates. The glass is coated with parallel conductors that form cells which, when energized, produce a gas discharge that makes...

Operates with light collectively emitted by the recombination of free electrons and ions in the plasma state.

Introduced into the laser beam from localized fluctuations in current density within the plasma itself. These fluctuations represent macroscopic changes of gain in the laser.

The study of highly ionized gases. Many phenomena not exhibited by uncharged gases are associated with plasma physics.

Plasma's ability to stop the transmission of laser light.

An electron beam gun in which plasma that is generated within a low-voltage hollow-cathode discharge serves as the source of electrons.

Monolithic self-scanning linear image sensor array for multichannel spectroscopy with a spectral range of from 200 to 1000 nm.

A plasma produced by the interaction of an intense laser pulse with a material surface. Production of ionized particle with high intensity radiation. The narrow path of the intense field produces a...

Plasma formed by heat radiation from the sun.

Oscillator device composed of a semiconducting diode in a coaxial resonating cavity. When the biasing current is applied to the diode, high-frequency waves are emitted into the cavity where they are...

Charged frozen pellets that are rapidly bombarded with a focused high-power laser to form a dense plasma that can be heated and sustained with neutral beams.

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor deposition, a technique for depositing thin films of various materials onto...

A method of lasing in which free electrons in a laser-produced plasma collide with neonlike ions to excite electrons to states that decay at different speeds, producing a population inversion.

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum. EUV radiation has wavelengths between 10 and 124 nanometers, which...

Decrease in cosmic ray activity that is observed approximately 24 hours after a solar flare, attributed to a shielding effect produced by magnetic fields contained in the plasma of the cloud emitted...

Fusion ignition refers to the point in a controlled nuclear fusion reaction where the energy released by the fusion reactions becomes self-sustaining, leading to a continuous release of energy...

An intensified charge-coupled device (ICCD) camera is an advanced imaging device that combines the capabilities of both an image intensifier and a charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor to achieve...

Collisional absorption of energy that occurs in inertial confinement fusion systems when hydrodynamic expansion of the plasma causes an electron passing through the field of an ion to absorb...

A laser in which the transition involved in stimulated emission of radiation takes place between two levels of an ionized gas. The gases are electrically excited in a container called a plasma tube,...

Laser ablation is a process that involves the removal or erosion of material from a target surface using laser energy. This technique is widely used in various scientific, industrial, and medical...

Laser peening is a surface enhancement technique used to improve the mechanical properties of materials, particularly metals. It involves the use of high-energy laser pulses to generate shockwaves on...

A nondestructive test, also referred to as LASAT, that uses a high-energy laser pulse that is targeted on an adhesively bonded part, resulting in the formation of plasma on its surface and,...

A method of analysis in which a pulsed laser beam is used to heat a particle, producing a plasma, or laser spark. As the plasma cools, optical energy characteristic of the elements in the plasma is...

Plasma-enriched deposition or planar magnetic sputtering that offers increased deposition rates in optical thin-film production. This technology surpasses conventional and RF sputtering.

A variation from standard physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating techniques, magnetron sputtering is a plasma coating process that utilizes magnetic fields to contain the plasma in front of the...

Process developed for the production of high-resolution patterns in electro- and magneto-optics. These high-generation devices use ion beams and plasma-free radicals.

Output noise in a laser beam resulting from acoustic disturbances of mirror separation or orientation. Such disturbances may come either from the plasma or from vibration of external sources.

In a laser, the fraction of plasma volume used by a particular transverse mode of oscillation, a determinant of the gain available to the mode.

The use of a reflective device, which can be fashioned from a variety of materials including gases, solids, dyes, aerosols, semiconductor crystals and plasmas, to replicate a laser beam by reversing...

Device in which contact ionization of atomic particles and thermionic electron emission are used to produce magnetically confined plasma that is greatly ionized.

The first nonlinear theory in plasma physics that details the time and space evolution of plasma wave instability from a microscopic vantage point and provides an outline of the plasma in terms of...

Interruption in the normal flow of a plasma or fluid characterized by sharp rises in velocity, temperature and pressure. As the shock passes into a gaseous compound, gas particles are heated and...

The constant outward flow of weakly magnetized plasma from the sun that is deflected by the magnetic field of the earth and, flowing around the field, creates a magnetosphere.

Sputtering equipment is machinery used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering. Sputtering is a method of depositing thin films of material onto a substrate surface...

A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering. Sputtering targets are typically made of metals, metal alloys, or compounds...