Photonics Dictionary: P

A piezoelectric translator that moves up and down a spindle like a caterpillar. It clamps itself at one end, expands, clamps the other end, releases the first end, and then contracts and begins the...

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...

Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or displacement. Piezoelectric materials exhibit the piezoelectric effect, which...

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...

Piezoelectricity is a property exhibited by certain materials in which they generate an electric charge in response to mechanical stress or deformation, and conversely, undergo mechanical deformation...

Piezoresistance is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where the electrical resistance of a material changes in response to applied mechanical stress or strain. This change in resistance...

A short length of optical fiber permanently fixed to a component and used to couple power between it and the transmission fiber.

A PIN photodiode is a type of photodetector or semiconductor device used to convert light signals into electrical signals. The name "PIN" is derived from the arrangement of the three semiconductor...

A type of eyepiece, or the modification of an eyepiece, in which a small hole, without a lens, functions as the eye lens; used in the adjustment and alignment of microscopes.

In image processing and elsewhere, generally an adjective to describe an assembly-line arrangement for performing a task. For example, an image is put through one kind of processing step and then...

The micrometer-size depressions that store data digitally in an optical data storage medium.

Pitch for polishing mixed with other materials to give it the right viscosity so that it will follow the fine-ground lens surface and yet maintain contact at all times.

Pixel binning, also known as pixel merging or pixel combining, is a technique used in digital imaging and camera technology. It involves the combining or grouping of adjacent pixels on an image...

Pixel pitch refers to the distance between the centers of two adjacent pixels on a display screen or imaging sensor. It is typically measured in millimeters and is a crucial specification in...

A pixel, short for "picture element," is the smallest controllable element of a digital image or display. It is a fundamental unit that represents a single point in a raster image, which is a grid of...

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...

The formula describing the spectral radiant emittance of a perfect blackbody as a function of its temperature and the wavelength of the emitted radiation. where Wλ equals radiation...

A transmission or reflecting grating with a flat or plane surface requiring a lens or concave mirror to focus the spectrum.

An imaginary plane dividing a body into two parts so that each part is the precise mirror image of the other in the plane of symmetry.

A camera system used for microphotography in which the document to be recorded is on a flat bed, perpendicular to the lens axis. The camera head is located above the copyboard on a column and may be...

A manufacturing process used to construct substrates for large optical components. Used with IR materials, planform bonding permits the joining of several smaller pieces to be used in place of a...

A plano in optics describes a lens, mirror, or other optical component that has one flat (plane) surface. The term is typically used in combination with another term that describes the curvature of...

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.

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

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

Plasmon ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) is a technique used in thin-film deposition processes, particularly in the production of optical coatings. This method combines two key processes: plasmon...

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,...

The direct cladding used for fused silica cores to create large numerical aperture fibers and used as overcoats to glass-clad fibers to reduce microbend loss and increase mechanical protection.

Plastic optical fiber (POF) is a type of optical fiber made from transparent plastic, typically polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) or polycarbonate. Unlike traditional glass optical fibers, which are made...

Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to traditional optical components made from glass or other materials. Plastic...

A semiconductor material used in photodetectors, sensitive in the infrared up to 5 µm.

The property exhibited by certain birefringent crystals in which the degree with which they transmit polarized light is different, depending on whether the ray is ordinary or extraordinary. An...

Pluggable optics, also known as pluggable transceivers or optical transceivers, are modular devices used in optical communication systems to transmit and receive data over optical fibers. They are...

A mixture of ionized gas and metal vapor generated by impingement of the laser beam onto a material being welded or a weld joint. The plume causes absorption and/or scattering of the incident laser...

A transparent lead-lanthanum zirconate titanate ceramic with optical qualities that can be controlled by applying voltages to thin plates of the material.

The transition boundary between P-type and N-type materials in a semiconductor.

Discharge that results when a doped semiconductor crystal with a PN junction is charged with a low-voltage direct current. The dual process depends on excitation caused by electrical energy...

A lamp, usually incandescent, that has a very compact filament, permitting a greater concentration of emitted light, aided by the use of small apertures and appropriate reflectors.

The point spread function (PSF) is a fundamental concept in imaging that describes the response of an imaging system to a point source or point object. It characterizes how a single point of light is...

A crystal diode whose rectifying activity is determined by the touching of the crystal to a finely pointed wire surrounded by a material of opposite type.

A device used in solar systems to direct mirror-reflected sunlight to a heat absorber and heat-driven engine, which turns a generator to produce electricity.