Photonics Dictionary: L

1. The process of wearing down the surface of a softer material by rubbing it under pressure against the surface of a harder material that has been formed in the shape opposite to that desired on the...

A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single package. These modules are designed to provide a convenient and efficient...

A lateral shearing interferometer is an optical device used in interferometry to measure phase differences between two beams of light. Interferometry is a technique that combines and analyzes...

A lens blank is a piece of optical material in a raw, unfinished state, typically in the form of a disk or block, from which lenses are eventually fabricated. Lens blanks are made from various...

The production of rough glass lens blanks that are pressed while red-hot to the approximate size and shape of the finished lens, ready for fine grinding and polishing. Large companies often do their...

An ophthalmic instrument used to measure the magnitude and direction of the maximum and minimum powers of a spectacle lens, and mark the optical center of the lens by an ink dot. When the lens to be...

Lidar, short for light detection and ranging, is a remote sensing technology that uses laser light to measure distances and generate precise, three-dimensional information about the shape and...

Transparent matter that usually is drawn into a cylindrical, pyramidical or conical shape through which light is channeled from one end to the other by total internal reflections. Optical fibers are...

The spectroscopic analysis of optical line shapes and frequency shifts, using the technique of light beating; i.e., the mixing of two narrowband optical components to produce an AC component in the...

An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs are widely used in various applications due to their energy efficiency,...

Liquid crystals are a state of matter that exhibits properties intermediate between those of conventional liquids and solid crystals. In a liquid crystal, the molecules are ordered like those in a...

Liquid marble refers to a unique form of microscale liquid encapsulation, where small droplets of liquid are coated with a fine layer of hydrophobic powder, such as silica nanoparticles or Teflon....

A mirror composed of liquid, taking advantage of the parabolic shape of a spinning liquid and the fact that the mirror's focal length can be adjusted by altering the velocity at which the liquid's...

The pattern, formed by a character generation cathode-ray tube system, in which the characters are made up of wave shapes synthesized by a series of sine and cosine terms.