Photonics Dictionary

The code used to describe the United States system of color telecasting.

A neuromorphic vision sensor is a type of imaging device designed to mimic the structure and functioning of the human visual system. Inspired by the biological principles of the human eye and brain,...

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 television system used for seeing in the dark, particularly with the use of infrared rays.

The ability to see over large angles of view.

Vision by means of retinal cones; color vision. Relatively high levels of luminance are required for photopic vision.

Vision by means of retinal rods; vision of the dark-adapted eye. In scotopic vision, the level of luminance is so low that the retinal cones are not stimulated, and there is no color vision.

A television system that uses a slow rate of horizontal scanning to increase its reproduction and transmittance accuracy of printed matter, photographs and illustrations.

In fiber optics, the condition in which each fiber of a bundle carries a separate channel.

A television system in which the images produced appear three-dimensional.

Vision in depth of three dimensions as a result of the spacing of the eyes. This spacing allows the eyes to see objects from slightly different points of view.

To transform a picture or image field into a television signal for transmission.

The term that represents the size of one of the many small elements into which a television image is necessarily broken down for transmission.

The span of frequencies within which a single channel of broadcast television must fall; in the US, it is 6 MHz.

A camera containing an electronic image sensor that converts the image to an electronic signal suitable for television applications.

The value equal to the raster height divided by the half-period of a periodic test pattern.

A device designed to enlarge the image of a microscopic object by television process. It may be a flying spot scanner that is used to scan the microscope slide, or a camera tube-microscope...

A television receiver that receives the signals generated by a television camera directly, or remotely through a radio signal. It may be used to continuously check image and sound reception; as a...

A television display system in which the television signal is converted to an image that is projected onto either a front or rear projection screen.

The combination of the audio and visual signals that are transmitted and received at the same time, correlating the scene and sound in a television picture.

An electronic device used to encode video and audio signals of a television camera into radio waves that are broadcast to remote receivers. The video and audio components are transmitted...

The graph of the oscillating variations composing the wave of a video signal.

The process or device by which more than one signal can be sent over a single channel by using different time intervals for the different signals. This may be done by varying the pulse duration,...

Also known as UV-VIS spectrometer, a device that measures the absorbance, reflectance or transmittance of light in the ultraviolet or visible wavelengths absorbed, reflected or transmitted. Commonly...

A television system designed to obtain pictures of objects or scenes beneath the surface of the water. Generally, a low-light-level television camera and a suitable light source are enclosed in a...

A system that allows the transmission of more than one signal over a common path, by assigning each signal a different frequency band. Also known as frequency division multiplexing.

An event-based image sensor, also known as a dynamic vision sensor (DVS), is a type of digital imaging device designed to capture visual information in a highly efficient and unique way compared to...

A 2D profile sensor is a type of sensor used in various industrial and technological applications to measure and capture detailed information about the shape, contour, or profile of an object in two...

A 3D profile sensor, also known as a 3D profiling sensor or 3D depth sensor, is a technology that is used to capture and measure the three-dimensional shape or profile of an object or a scene. These...

3D Laser Triangulation - A technology that allows sensors to probe the surroundings. Laser triangulation systems have an ideal operating point, or the standoff distance, where its reflected spot is...

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects layer by layer from a digital model. This technology allows the creation of...

A dispersion relation defined in order to value the reciprocal amount of dispersion. It is defined as the refractivity over the difference in index values of the shortest and longest visible...

Device which measures the index of refraction of glass as well as the dispersion over visible range.

A departure from ideal paraxial imaging behavior. The distortion of an optical field wavefront as it is propagated through the elements of an optical system. The field distortion is due to the...

Method of preserving the measured color value and color information as it is translated from differing devices. For example the output of a television display may be measured to have an identical...

The minimum value of luminance for vision. The value may vary with age as well as dark adaption period. (Measured range approximately log luminance -3 through 2.) About 10 -2 ml at the fovea, 10 -5...

The value of the distance of distinct vision, minimum focusing distance or near point, divided by the focal length of the lens. Magnification is produced when the optic is placed at its focal...

The ratio of the speed of light in a vacuum divided by the speed of light in the medium.

The measurement of heat energy as determined from absolute zero as the zero point on the scale. Increments are identical to the Celsius as well as Kelvin scales.

The transition cross section constant coefficient which defines the transition probability of absorption from ground to a higher level within a given atomic or molecular species. The transition...

An optical lens manufactured to control the transmission of light over a specified wavelength range. Low absorption lenses are produced which are anti-reflection coated for UV, VIS and IR wavelengths...

A measuring device that uses a light-sensitive cell or detector to determine the amount of light transmitted by a substance.

An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular wavelength or energy level. It is a distinctive feature in the absorption...

Measures the absorption or sample transmittance over a range of specified wavelengths. Sample may be placed within the device and the transmission measured to an accuracy of given percent. The...

The measured change in absorption at a single wavelength while altering experimental parameters such as the incident intensity or pulse width.

An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms, it measures acceleration. Accelerometers are widely used in various...

Impurity in a semiconductor or any other electroluminescent device capable of inducing hole conduction and accepting a valence band electron to produce an acceptor energy level.