Photonics Dictionary: N

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...

A near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The near-infrared spectrum typically extends from about 700...

A light source, such as the sun or an incandescent lamp, that freely penetrates ordinary glass bulbs and emits in the near-ultraviolet (wavelengths ranging from about 300 to 400 nm). A mercury vapor...

An artificial material, engineered to have a negative refractive index value, such that light or any other form of electromagnetic radiation bends in the opposite direction than it would in ordinary...

A Nernst glower, also known simply as a Nernst lamp or Nernst filament, is a type of incandescent lamp or radiant heater based on the Nernst effect. It was invented by the German physicist and...

An instrument devised by Nichols and Hull for use in the measurement of radiation pressure. The device has two small silvered, glass mirrors that are suspended, in the way of a torsion balance, by a...

A device that uses low-level visible radiation or infrared radiation to produce a visual image of a night scene. These devices may rely on the amplification of existing visible light by...

A type of radiation detector designed to recognize nonlinear optical effects, such as the Raman effect, by means of a directional, nearly monochromatic light beam; e.g., a laser beam.

Irregular waves; e.g., light waves, having little coherence and a broad spectrum of frequencies.

A nonradiative transition refers to a process in which an electron or an atom undergoes a change in its energy state without emitting a photon. In contrast to radiative transitions, where a photon is...

Also referred to as a band-stop or band rejection filter; a notch filter is a filter that is designed to screen out a very narrow band of radiation by transmitting most wavelengths with little...