Photonics Dictionary

Prediction based on observations of nuclear masses in the valley of stability that indicates the maximum number of electrons that will bind with a given number of protons in progressive order along...

The figure seen through or imaged by an optical system. It may contain structures, natural or artificial, or it may be the real or virtual image of an object formed by another optical system. In...

Oleophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or resist oils. The word oleophobic comes from the Greek words "oleo," meaning oil, and "phobos," meaning fear. Oleophobic...

Also referred to as the opposition surge, the opposition effect is a photometric phenomenon in which a rough retroreflective surface appears brighter when illuminated from directly behind the...

The imaginary line passing through both the centers of curvatures of the optical surfaces of a lens or mirror; the optical centerline for all the centers of an optical element(s) of an optical...

Also known as OCT-A, optical coherence tomography angiography is an imaging technique that uses light waves to measure changes in the reflectance characteristics, enabling the the quantitative...

Refers to a variety of methods and tools used to determine the surface contour and performance of optical components and systems.

An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and characteristics of optical components, systems, and devices. These instruments play a...

Optical tweezers refer to a scientific instrument that uses the pressure of laser light to trap and manipulate microscopic objects, such as particles or biological cells, in three dimensions. This...

The degree to which the surface of a lens causes an incident ray of light to bend, or the amount of convergence or divergence that the surface contributes to a wavefront passing through it.

Black and white film that is sensitive to green, blue and violet light but not to red light.

Point at which a laser's material gain is equal to, or greater than, the circuit losses.

The transmission of data in groups (packets) of information~comma~ each handled as an aggregate.

The production of a positron-electron pair by a photon having energy greater than one mega-electron-volt, whereby some of the photon energy is converted to the rest mass of the pair.

A camera designed to form a continuous record of an expansive section of the horizon. The typical panoramic camera is mounted to rotate about a vertical axis. A slit opening in the film plane and the...

The image distortion produced by a panoramic camera with a swinging lens or a swinging mirror in front of a fixed lens. The magnification is greatest in the center and diminishes to each side in the...

An array of lines in the infrared region of the emission spectrum of atomic hydrogen. Their wave numbers are expressed by the equation: where represents the wave number in the reciprocal centimeters,...

Typically represented by the Greek letter μ, magnetic permeability is the measure of a material's ability to generate and sustain a magnetic field within itself when an external magnetic field is...

The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a cubic arrangement of oxygen ions, forming a framework within which other...

A type of matched filter that responds only to the phase of incoming light; the output has a much greater intensity than that of a classical matched filter, which responds to phase and amplitude. The...

The use of photoelectric sensors to detect and measure the intensity of a light source. This application, as compared to human observation, results in higher speeds of operation, a greater...

Photogrammetry is a technique used to obtain accurate three-dimensional measurements of objects and environments through the analysis of photographs or imagery. It involves extracting information...

A type of computer in which the electronic circuits, which process data serially, are replaced by photonic circuits capable of parallel processing and thus of much greater speed and power. Where the...

A solid-state device similar to an ordinary transistor except that incident light on the PN junctions regulates the response of the device. It offers built-in gain and a greater sensitivity than that...

Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term "photovoltaic" is derived from the words "photo," meaning light, and...

A vacuum gauge designed to measure very high degrees of vacuum by thermal conduction.

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...

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...

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.

A polariton is a quasiparticle resulting from the strong coupling between photons (light particles) and certain types of excitations in a material, such as electronic excitations (electrons and...

A substance that transmits the infrared, but which is too delicate or fragile to be used in the form of a single crystal. Instead, the pure material is finely ground, pressed to the required shape,...

A set of three colored lights which, when mixed, give the sensation of white light. The set used in color television, for example, is red, green, blue (RGB).

A pair of telescopes with prismatically erected images, mounted side by side with the eyepieces at the interocular distance of the observer. This separation is adjustable with a convenient millimeter...

Acronym for profile resolution obtained by excitation. In its simplest form, probe involves the overlap of two counter-propagating laser pulses of appropriate wavelength, such that one pulse...

Device in which contact ionization of atomic particles and thermionic electron emission are used to produce magnetically confined plasma that is greatly ionized.

A laser output that occurs when the cavity resonator Q is first kept very low, using rotating mirrors or saturable absorbers, so that the population inversion achieved is greater than usual. A high...

Quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are semiconductor nanocrystals, to produce vibrant and high-quality images. QLED displays are...

A reagent is a substance or compound that is used in a chemical reaction to bring about a specific transformation or to detect the presence or absence of another substance. Reagents are employed in...

The ability of a vision system to interpret an image in a short enough time to keep pace with most operations.

Also known as display primaries. Colors formed by a television receiver that are of constant chromaticity and variable luminance, and that, mixed in certain proportions, form other colors. Red, green...

The growth of particular grain fragments in a metal or alloy, at the expense of others, that occurs when the metal or alloy is severely worked, as by cold rolling. Recrystallization results in...

Reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) is a non-invasive imaging technique that allows for high-resolution, in vivo imaging of biological tissues at the cellular level. It is particularly useful in...

Image processing operations performed on one area of an image.

Remote sensing is a method of data collection and observation where information about objects, areas, or phenomena on Earth's surface is gathered from a distance, typically using sensors onboard...