Photonics Dictionary

A flexible single- or multifiber cable having a bundle of glass fibers arranged to transmit an image.

A device used for coding messages and having a fiber bundle that is aligned at both ends and scrambled in the middle, potted and cut. The resulting halves of the bundles serve as encoders or decoders...

A fiber optic sensor is a device that uses optical fibers to detect and measure physical, chemical, biological, or environmental parameters. Unlike traditional electrical sensors, fiber optic sensors...

A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to transmit light from a source to a spectrometer unit, where the light is...

A coherent fiber optic bundle made from fibers whose diameter changes gradually along its length. Used to magnify or reduce the input image.

A fiber optic transceiver, often simply referred to as an "optical transceiver," is a device used in fiber optic communications to transmit and receive data over optical fibers. It integrates both a...

The face of a cathode-ray tube (CRT) that has a fiber optic sheet attached to its surface. The sheet's fibers are at right angles to the face, allowing the transmittance of the fluorescent trace...

The use of thin flexible glass or plastic fibers as wave guides — or "light pipes" — to channel light from one location to another. Fiber optics is based off of the principle of total...

An optical recording technique that uses light source(s), a beamsplitting cube, light detector(s) and an optical fiber chronically implanted in animal brain to deliver excitation light to neurons...

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

A microscope in which laser light is delivered through single-mode fibers that replace the pinhole usually used in confocal microscopy. When the Gaussian mode is imaged from the fiber output onto the...

A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the purpose of efficient light transmission. In this configuration, the LED serves...

A fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna (FCPA) is a type of optoelectronic device that combines a photoconductive antenna with optical fibers for the purpose of generating or detecting terahertz...

A method of terminating optical fibers by forming a lens directly on the end of the fiber, eliminating the need for precise end-to-end placement or epoxy sealing in fiber connections.

A wide-field multiobject spectroscopy system used in astronomy, in which a bundle of low-loss optical fibers positioned on the target images is rearranged at its other end into a linear array along...

The spectral transmission window in silica-based fibers between 830 and 850 nm.

An optical switch that controls conduction paths into and out of a junction in fiber optic and integrated optical circuits.

A material that surrounds a fiber optic cable's buffer tubes to prevent moisture from entering if the jacket is breached.

Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the transmission of data using modulated beams of light through free space (air or a...

The lowest order mode of a waveguide. In fibers, the mode designated LP01 or HE11.

Optical fibers fused together to form a solid, vacuum-tight assembly in the form of a slab or rod. Discs or rectangular shapes having ground and polished surfaces perpendicular to the fiber lengths...

Glass consisting of almost pure silicon dioxide (SiO2). Also called vitreous silica. Frequently used in optical fibers and windows.

A splice accomplished by the application of localized heat sufficient to fuse or melt the ends of two lengths of optical fiber, forming a continuous single fiber.

A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is composed of layers of gallium, aluminum, and arsenic, hence...

A system of mirrors that can be used to direct light from a single laser source into any one of a number of separate optical fibers.

The optical power loss caused by a space between axially aligned fibers.

Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor commonly used in various electronic and optical applications. Germanium crystals...

Temporal jitter at a signal's receiver when amplified noise causes frequency shifts, as with a soliton traveling through an erbium-doped fiber amplifier.

Descriptive of an optical fiber having a core refractive index that decreases almost parabolically and radially outward toward the cladding. This type of fiber combines high bandwidth with moderately...

The term gradient-index profile refers to a specific type of refractive index distribution within an optical material. In optics, the refractive index of a material describes how much the speed of...

A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather than having a uniform refractive index like conventional lenses. This...

A defect in the cleaved end face of an optical fiber, defined as multiple surface irregularities across the fiber surface. A less serious imperfection of the same nature is known as mist.

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...

High-modulus elastic fibers that exhibit the following differences from conventional elastic fibers: Increasing temperature decreases recovery force (the fibers are enthalpic vs. conventionally...

A type of optical fiber in which a silica core is surrounded by a hard polymer or similar material much stronger than the customary cladding material.

Designation for the fundamental mode of an optical fiber.

Optical fiber in which the attenuation exceeds the normally acceptable level for long-haul or data communications use.

A very high bandwidth communication line often used in fiber optics.

Histochemical staining is a laboratory technique used in biology and medicine to visualize specific chemical components within biological tissues. This technique involves the application of various...

An infrared-transmitting optical fiber with a hollow core; it can be square, round or rectangular in cross section. Capable of carrying high laser power but subject to high bending losses.

Holmium lasers are a type of medical laser that utilizes holmium-doped crystals as the gain medium. The term holmium laser is often associated with a specific type of laser used in urology for...

A method of manufacturing polycrystalline infrared-transmitting optical fiber by heating a single halide crystal billet and forcing it through a die.

In fiber optics, a material whose properties, usually of transmission, are distinctly affected by the absorption of water vapor.

E.I. duPont's trade name for a material used in the jacket of fiber optic cables. It is flame-retardant, thermally stable and resistant to oxidation, ozone and radiation.

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...