Photonics Dictionary

A crystalline-quartz plate designed according to specifications but having its two major faces parallel.

The analysis, by x-rays, of the crystalline structure and other properties of metals and alloys.

Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally introduced into the crystal lattice of a material to modify its properties....

A device that uses nematic liquid crystals sandwiched between fused silica substrates to change the phase of polarized light. The cell is tunable from half-wave to zero retardation because variation...

Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is highly transparent in the infrared region of the electromagnetic...

A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is highly prized for its exceptional optical...

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications due to its exceptional optical, mechanical, and thermal properties. Sapphire...

A scintillation detector is a radiation detection device that utilizes scintillation crystals to detect and measure ionizing radiation, such as gamma rays, x-rays, or charged particles. It consists...

Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a nonlinear optical process that occurs when two photons with the same frequency combine within a nonlinear material, resulting in the generation of a new photon...

Second-order nonlinear optical properties refer to a class of phenomena exhibited by certain materials in response to intense light, typically in the realm of optics and photonics. Nonlinear optical...

1. In glass, a solid inclusion having a small diameter. 2. A particular, single crystal that, after undergoing the Czochralski method, evolves into large single crystals.

A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In other words, semiconductors have properties that are intermediate between...

A sheet of plastic material containing microscopic crystals of herapathite or some other similar substance that transmits light polarized in one direction, but absorbs light polarized in a...

An abundant material found in the form of quartz and agate and as one of the major constituents of sand. The silicates of sodium, calcium, and other metals can be readily fused, and on cooling do not...

An advanced technique that allows the detection of one molecule within a crystal or a cell through optical excitation. Single-molecule spectroscopy (SMS) can image at subwavelength scales, down to a...

A form of liquid crystal in which flow does not take place in the usual manner. When examined with polarized light, the substance often forms drops that display a series of fine lines. X-ray...

A gelatinous fluid that can be used as a porous thin-film coating for optical components, including laser beam collimators, or as a protective coating for glass and crystalline materials.

A device for converting sunlight into electrical energy, consisting of a sandwich of P-type and N-type semiconducting wafers. A photon with sufficient energy striking the cell can dislodge an...

1. The reduction in the developable density of a photographic emulsion that has been extremely overexposed. 2. In a laser system, damage resulting from ultraviolet radiation that degrades the lasing...

A solid-state laser is a type of laser that uses a solid gain medium (as opposed to a liquid or gas) to produce coherent light. The term "solid-state" refers to the fact that the active medium, where...

A light valve that uses a crystal as the control layer medium and that operates on the principle of the electro-optic effect.

A ruggedized scintillation counter used in oil well logging. The cylindrical housing contains a gamma ray source, a crystalline scintillator and a photomultiplier tube. As the sonde is drawn through...

A spatial light modulator (SLM) is an optical device that modulates or manipulates the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light in two dimensions, typically in the form of an array. SLMs are...

An opaque inclusion in glass that contains undissolved or crystalline material. Also known as a seed.

Supercontinuum refers to a broad spectrum of light that spans a wide range of wavelengths, typically from the visible to the near-infrared or even mid-infrared regions of the electromagnetic...

A liquid crystal display using the material in its supertwisted nematic phase; the birefringence of the liquid crystal results in a characteristic yellow or blue color, unless corrected.

A form of liquid crystal in which the 90° twist of the twisted nematic phase has been increased to 180° or more, resulting in higher contrast and a wider viewer angle in the display.

A synchrotron is a type of particle accelerator that uses magnetic fields to steer charged particles, typically electrons or positrons, in a closed, circular or elliptical path. The name synchrotron...

With respect to crystals, having three mutually rectangular axes, only two of which are equal.

A semiconductor formed by applying a particular single-crystal layer to the specific insulator.

A Ti:sapphire laser is a type of solid-state laser that utilizes a titanium-doped sapphire crystal as the gain medium. The name Ti:sapphire comes from the combination of titanium (Ti) as the dopant...

Topological photonics is a branch of physics and optics that explores the application of topological concepts to the behavior of light in photonic systems. Drawing inspiration from the field of...

A naturally occurring crystalline mineral that has the property of polarizing transmitted light. It is little used now that the Polaroid sheet is available.

A transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful microscopy technique that uses a beam of electrons to create high-resolution images of extremely thin samples. In a TEM, electrons are...

Luminescence that arises from friction and that usually occurs in crystalline materials.

With respect to a crystal, having three unequal axes intersecting at angles, only two of which can be equal and only one of which can measure 90°.

A defect of natural quartz crystals in which both the right and left quartz are in the same crystal.

A form of liquid crystal widely used in displays, achieved by sandwiching a liquid crystal material between two substrates whose inside surfaces have been prepared with a special coating that aligns...

A device that uses a piezoelectric crystal to convert ultrasonic sound waves, transmitted through a subject, into a voltage that modulates the electron beam of a cathode-ray tube.

In an ionic crystal, the region in the crystal lattice where the ion, predicted to be present, is absent.

In a crystalline substance, the spectral range of states of energy that contains the crystal's binding valence electrons.

Lasers based on neodymium-doped yttrium or gadolinium vanadate crystals. These include yttrium vanadate (Nd:YVO4), gadolinium vanadate (Nd:GdVO4), and lutetium vanadate (Nd:LuVO4). Vanadate lasers...