Photonics Dictionary

Triggering a laser at a predetermined time by pumping it to a level just below its threshold and then using an auxiliary source that quickly pumps it above threshold. Means of achieving it in laser...

In an optical waveguide, the refractive index as a function of radius.

A thin-film device containing miniature optical components connected via optical waveguides on a transparent dielectric substrate, whose lenses, detectors, filters, couplers and so forth perform...

Integrated photonics is a field of study and technology that involves the integration of optical components, such as lasers, modulators, detectors, and waveguides, on a single chip or substrate. The...

That distortion resulting from dispersion of the group velocity of a propagating mode. It is the only distortion occurring in single-mode waveguides.

A method of fabricating a graded-index optical waveguide by means of an ion exchange process.

A power loss caused by transverse or lateral deviation from optimum alignment of source to optical waveguide, waveguide to waveguide, or waveguide to detector.

The numerical aperture of an optical system used to couple (launch) power into an optical waveguide.

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

In an optical waveguide, a ray for which geometric optics would predict total internal reflection at the core boundary, but which suffers loss by virtue of the curved core boundary.

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

A theoretical analysis of radiation loss from planar optical waveguides due to scattering by surface irregularities/surface roughness of the walls of the waveguide.

A micro-ring resonator is a compact optical device that utilizes the resonant behavior of light within a small ring-shaped waveguide structure to selectively enhance or filter certain wavelengths of...

1. The characteristic of how light propagates through a waveguide that can be designated by a radiation pattern in a plane transverse to the direction of travel. 2. The state of an oscillating system...

In an optical waveguide, the exchange of power/energy among modes.

The number of bound modes that an optical waveguide is capable of supporting.

In an optical waveguide,- typically a multimode fiber - the distortion resulting from differential mode delay, i.e. axial rays (modes), with the shortest path length, will have the shortest...

The combination of two or more signals for transmission along a single wire, path or carrier. In most optical communication systems this is referred to as wavelength division multiplexing, in which...

Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at dimensions smaller than the wavelength of light. It involves the study and...

Nanoplasmonics is a branch of nanophotonics that focuses on the study and manipulation of optical phenomena at the nanoscale using plasmonic materials and structures. Plasmonics deals with the...

Direct conversion of a photon from one wavelength to a lower energy photon of another wavelength(s) due to inelastic scattering. In an optical waveguide, nonlinear scattering is usually not important...

Also referred to as the V number in fiber optics; the normalized frequency is a dimensionless quantity, denoted by the symbol V, given by: where a is waveguide core radius, l is wavelength in vacuum,...

A casting consisting of an optical material molded into the desired geometry for grinding, polishing or, in the case of optical waveguides, drawing to the final optical-mechanical specifications.

An optical combiner, in the context of optics and display technologies, refers to a device or component that combines multiple optical signals or images into a single output. The purpose of an...

Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the fabrication of optical components and systems. These materials are characterized by...

In an optical fiber or waveguide communications system, an optoelectronic device or module that receives an optical signal, converts this optical signal to an electrical signal which is then...

For a particular mode in a waveguide, the ratio of the angular frequency to constant phase.

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

A photonic engine refers to a device or system that utilizes photonics, or the science and technology of generating, controlling, and detecting photons (particles of light), to perform various...

A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) is a compact and integrated device that incorporates multiple photonic components and functions on a single chip, similar to the way electronic integrated circuits...

Low-insertion-loss fiber coupler fabricated from a sheet of light-sensitive material laminated onto a fused quartz substrate and exposed through a suitable mask. After development of the plastic...

Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free electrons in a metal or semiconductor at the nanoscale. Specifically,...

An optical waveguide having a silica core and a plastic cladding.

A glass structure from which an optical fiber waveguide may be drawn.

In a waveguide, the material in intimate contact with the cladding surface, applied to preserve the integrity of that surface.

An instrument that measures the angle at which a prism can couple laser light into an optical waveguide; used to determine the thickness and refractive index of thin films in integrated optical...

In an optical waveguide, that dispersion attributable to the variation of refractive index profile with wavelength. The profile variation has two contributing factors: variation in refractive index...

A mode in an optical waveguide whose fields are transversely oscillatory everywhere external to the waveguide. It exists even in the limit of zero wavelength.

A device used to accelerate the electrons in a free-electron laser by channeling microwave energy into waveguide cavity assemblies.

A reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) is a key component in wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) optical communication networks. It allows for flexible and dynamic routing of...

A light ray that has had its direction altered because of its traversing an air-to-glass interface at some angle. In an optical waveguide, a ray that is refracted from the core into the cladding.

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications due to its exceptional optical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Sapphire...

Any isolated wave that propagates without dispersion of energy. Specifically to photonics, an ultrashort pulse of laser light that propagates through a waveguide without characteristic chromatic...