Photonics Dictionary

A transducer is a device or component that converts one form of energy into another. It is commonly used in various fields, including electronics, acoustics, and instrumentation, to facilitate the...

Any arrangement of a bundle of optical fibers that alters the shape of the image. For example, by systematic regulation of the spacing of the fibers from the entrance end to the exit end, a...

A structure consisting of a thin film of liquid crystal sandwiched between light-polarizing filters that have received a surface lubricant. Depending on motion, the transducer acts as a highly...

Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical vibrations or vice versa. The piezoelectric effect is a property exhibited by...

An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms, it measures acceleration. Accelerometers are widely used in various...

An acousto-optic modulator (AOM) is a device that utilizes the interaction between sound waves and light waves to modulate or control the intensity, frequency, phase, or direction of laser beams. It...

A bulk crystalline optic which permits the propagation of light through a volume of index altered material. The variation in refractive index along the material volume is due to a piezoelectric...

An electronic transducer, either fixed or adjustable, that reduces the amplitude of a wave without causing significant distortion. See also beam attenuator.

A light-tight box that receives light from an object or scene and focuses it to form an image on a light-sensitive material or a detector. The camera generally contains a lens of variable aperture...

A transducer composed of more than one high-pass, bandpass, low-pass or band-elimination filter.

In optical character recognition, the mechanical or electronic transducer used to detect the level of illumination present in the various portions of an illuminated sample region.

A device used to scan, with a small, intensely bright spot, portions of a picture surface and to transform the original picture into a series of electrical signals. In optical character recognition,...

A night-vision device that uses one or more infrared transducers to scan a scene in the 3- to 5-µm or 8- to 12-µm spectral region, convert the infrared radiation to electronic data and...

A ferroelectric polycrystalline ceramic material used in optical memories for computers and as a piezoelectric transducer.

Laser-powered telephone device for analog communications that employs a vibrating plastic membrane as a transmitter to modulate laser light piped via optical fibers from a central exchange, omitting...

A technique for detecting and measuring atmospheric pollution, in which an oscillating mirror directs half the incoming light to a transducer that controls amplitude and frequency, and the resulting...

Optoacoustic, or photoacoustic, refers to a phenomenon and related techniques that involve the generation of acoustic waves in a material induced by the absorption of light. The term "optoacoustic"...

Pertaining to a device that responds to optical power, emits or modifies optical radiation, or utilizes optical radiation for its internal operation. Any device that functions as an...

A technique used to generate a phase shift between reference and sample light beams. The phase shift can be performed through the use of a mirror that is moved along the optic axis by a piezoelectric...

A crystal consisting of a substance that has the ability to become electrically polarized and has strong piezoelectric properties. It is cut so as to emphasize the coupling to some distinct...

A high-resolution imaging instrument that can detect and measure the positions of individual atoms on the surface of a material. A very fine conductive probe is placed at a distance of 10 to 20...

The formation and display of three-dimensional images by ultrasonic energy. In one technique, the energy pulses from an ultrasonic transducer scan the object through a liquid medium and, receiving...

A piezoelectric transducer made of a thin strip of piezoelectric material bonded to a strip of metal.