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117 terms

Photonics Dictionary: M

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macrobending
In optical fiber, bends that are larger than microbends (see microbending), being visible. Generally they are caused by bending the cable beyond the specified bend radius. Light escaping at the bends...
microbending
In optical fiber, sharp but microscopic curvatures that create local axial displacements of a few microns and spatial wavelength displacements of a few millimeters. One frequent cause is longitudinal...
microbending loss
Transmission loss in optical fibers caused by packaging processes; it is considered a power-coupling effect from the guided modes to the radiation modes.
multichannel direct-reading spectrometer
An instrument that contains a spectrograph with a grating in which an array of slits, in place of a photographic plate, is arranged according to the lines of the sample to create an illustration of...
master oscillation -> injection seeding
The use of a small ultrastable master oscillator (a diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser) to achieve single-frequency operation of a large pulsed Nd:YAG host laser, providing improved bandwidth and temporal...
machine learning
Machine learning (ML) is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on the development of algorithms and statistical models that enable computers to improve their performance on a specific...
machine vision lens
A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated inspection, measurement, and quality control in industrial applications....
machine vision lighting
Machine vision lighting refers to the use of specific lighting techniques and equipment in the field of machine vision, which is a technology that enables machines to capture and interpret visual...
machine vision system
A machine vision system is an integrated combination of hardware and software components designed to capture, process, and analyze images to perform automated inspection, measurement, and quality...
machine vision
Machine vision, also known as computer vision or computer sight, refers to the technology that enables machines, typically computers, to interpret and understand visual information from the world,...
macrobend loss
In an optical waveguide, that loss attributable to macrobending. Macrobending usually causes little or no radiative loss.
macula lutea
The small central portion of the human retina that is responsible for providing the clearest, and most distinct aspects of human vision. Light from an object directly forms an image on the macula...
magnetic lens
An arranged series of coils, magnets or electromagnets disposed in such a way that the resulting magnetic fields generate a Lorentz force that is used to then focus or deflect beams of rapidly moving...
magnetically focused image tube
A vacuum tube in which a magnetic field is superimposed onto the tube's electrical field. When the two fields are aligned, electrons from the photocathode are accelerated through the tube in a spiral...
magneto-optic storage
A specific type of storage in which the material to be written on is heated above its transition temperature and switched in a biased field. Reading of the material is determined by the magneto-optic...
magneto-optics
Magneto-optics refers to the study and manipulation of the interaction between magnetic fields and light (electromagnetic radiation). This field of physics explores how the properties of light, such...
magnetometer
A magnetometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the strength and/or direction of a magnetic field. It can detect and quantify the intensity of magnetic fields in its vicinity. Magnetometers...
magnetorheological finishing
Magnetorheological finishing (MRF) is a precision optics polishing technique used for shaping and finishing optical surfaces to achieve extremely high levels of smoothness and accuracy. It is...
magnification
The ratio of the size of the image of an object to that of the object. The ratio of the linear size of the image to that of the object is lateral magnification. Angular magnification is the ratio of...
magnon
A magnon is a quasiparticle representing a quantized spin wave in a magnetic material. In other words, it is a collective excitation of the spins of electrons in a magnetic solid, analogous to the...
mandrel wrap test
A means of testing optical fiber for macrobending losses by wrapping the fiber once at very low tension around a mandrel, and then measuring attenuation vs. wavelength.
maser
An acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. Predecessor to the laser, the maser or 'microwave laser' was the first device to produce coherent electromagnetic waves,...
masks for evaporation/deposition
In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit material onto substrates, creating patterns or structures with precise...
mass spectrograph
A device that uses electromagnetic fields to separate electrically charged particles according to their masses. As a beam of charged particles is passed through a mass spectrograph, the result is a...
mass spectrometer
A device used to measure the masses and relative concentrations of atoms and molecules. It utilizes the Lorentz force generated by external magnetic field on a moving charged particle, in which the...
mass spectroscope
An instrument that uses electromagnetic fields to sort out the relative masses of atoms and molecules.The same way an optical spectroscope uses a prism to separate light into its various wavelengths,...
massive optics
Optical components exceeding 24 in. in diameter. The components are usually glass, acrylic or polystyrene and are used for virtual image systems in simulators and collimators.
matrix unit
An electrical or optical device used to convert color coordinates.
McClatchey model
Calculation of gas and aerosol transmission and emission characteristics for several model atmospheres, including two model aerosol distributions.
measuring wedge
A wedge in a rangefinder or heightfinder used to displace the image produced by one telescope so that it coincides with that produced by the other telescope, thus affording a measurement of the...
medical lasers
Medical lasers are devices that produce intense beams of light with specific characteristics and properties, which are used for various medical applications. These lasers emit light in the form of...
MEL
many-element laser; maximum excess loss (MEL) — the many element laser is a laser unit that consists of N like elements of active materials for support with the mode selection of the laser output. The mode selection properties of a many element laser have been experimentally exploited with as many as 10 like elements. Maximum excess loss is the maximum power lost within a give system (typically a fiber optic communication system) including scattering, dispersion, absorption and coupling loss.
member
In a lens system, a group of elements considered as an entity; either a front or rear member depending on whether it is before or after the aperture stop.
MEMS fiber optic switch
A MEMS fiber optic switch is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device designed to selectively route optical signals between multiple fiber optic channels. These switches utilize miniature...
mercury vapor light source
A lamp that has mercury in a tube or bulb that has first been evacuated. The electricity travels through the vapor between the electrodes and produces a blue-green light that is rich in ultraviolet...
mesosphere -> chemosphere
Also known as mesosphere. A level of the atmosphere, extending from the stratosphere to the ionosphere, that is noted for its photochemical activity.
meta-optics
Meta-optics, also known as metasurface optics or flat optics, is a branch of optics that involves the design, fabrication, and utilization of artificial structures called metasurfaces to control and...
metabolic imaging
Metabolic imaging refers to the visualization and quantification of metabolic processes within living organisms, tissues, or cells using various imaging techniques. It provides insights into the...
metabolite
A metabolite is any small molecule that is a product of metabolism, the chemical processes that occur within living organisms to maintain life. Metabolites can include a wide variety of molecules,...
metal component
An accurate metal prism or plane parallel plate that is cemented to an optical element and remains with it during a series of grinding or polishing processes. The metal element contains threaded...
metalens
A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light at a subwavelength scale. Unlike traditional lenses made of glass or other...
metamaterial
Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties not found in naturally occurring substances. These materials are designed to manipulate electromagnetic waves in ways that are not...
metastable state
An excited energy state of an atom or atomic system that has a longer lifetime than the ordinary excited state and typically a shorter lifetime than the ground state of that system. Metastable states...
metasurfaces
Metasurfaces are two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength-scale artificial structures, often referred to as meta-atoms or meta-elements, arranged in a specific pattern to manipulate the propagation of...
metaverse
The term "metaverse" refers to a collective virtual shared space, created by the convergence of virtually enhanced physical reality and persistent virtual worlds. It is a concept derived from science...
metric photography
The photographic recording of objects or events in a manner that allows quantitative information to be derived from the photograph. An example is the film made by a cinetheodolite in photographing a...
metrology
Metrology is the science and practice of measurement. It encompasses the theoretical and practical aspects of measurement, including the development of measurement standards, techniques, and...
Michelson-Morley experiment
An optical experiment carried out conclusively in 1887 that demonstrated that the ether, a hypothetical medium postulated by physicists to explain how light could travel in a wave motion through...
micro-LED
Micro-LED (micro-light-emitting diode) refers to a technology that involves the use of very small light-emitting diodes to create displays and lighting systems. These LEDs are miniature versions of...
micro-optic gyroscope
A thin-film device that integrates optics and electronics on a single chip to provide a passive-ring resonator gyroscope capable of withstanding high g forces.

Photonics DictionaryM


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