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Photonics Dictionary

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inertial fusion energy
Inertial fusion energy (IFE) refers to a proposed method of generating electricity by harnessing the energy released from the fusion of light atomic nuclei, typically isotopes of hydrogen, through a...
infrared photomicrography
Photographic recording that uses infrared radiation as the light source to form an image of a microscopic object and a system of lenses and objectives that are transparent to the radiation. The image...
infrared searchlight
An infrared source combined with reflecting projection optics to illuminate a target making it visible when observed through an infrared viewing device.
injection luminescent diode
A semiconductor diode operating in either a coherent or incoherent mode that is used as a near-infrared or visible source in triggering light-activated devices.
integrated energy
Also known as integrated exposure. A measurement of light from sources that vary rapidly with time, defined as the integral of instantaneous power and time and expressed as units per second.
integration time
Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a sensor collects and accumulates incoming light or signal. It is a crucial...
interference spectrum
The spectrum produced by the interference of light provided that the source used to create the interference has a broad enough emittance to form a spectrum.
interferometer
An instrument that employs the interference of lightwaves to measure the accuracy of optical surfaces; it can measure a length in terms of the length of a wave of light by using interference...
isotopically selected laser spectroscopy
A spectroscopic technique in which an excitation band absorbs laser energy resulting in an electronic transition. The isotopic species may then be measured using a time of flight mass spectrometer....
knife-edge scanning microscope
An imaging device originally created to image whole mouse brain volumes at microscopic resolution. The main component of the instrument is an automated microtome and microscope capable of producing...
krypton lamp
An arc lamp that has its cavity filled with krypton to produce a light source with unique characteristics.
lamp housing
A device designed to concentrate and direct a light source by enclosing the source in it and using a concave reflector to direct the light through its only opening.
landolt band
A dark band that may appear in the field of crossed Nicol prisms with a powerful source such as the sun because the light is not strictly parallel and is not extinguished immediately.
laser active elements
Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the amplification of light through the process of stimulated emission. These...
laser biostimulation -> biostimulation
The action of a biological system responding to a single or multiple coherent particles of light produced from a laser source. Examples of laser biostimulation include: retinal interaction of light...
laser crystal
A laser crystal, also known as an active medium or gain medium, is a solid-state material used in the construction of lasers. The primary function of the laser crystal is to amplify light by...
laser diode -> diode laser
A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light. Semiconductor diodes are electronic devices that conduct electricity primarily in one...
laser Doppler velocimeter
Device which determines particle velocity through the measurement of scattered interference of a beam pair from a single source. The measured light is Doppler shifted which provides information...
laser interferometer
An interferometer that uses a laser as its light source. The purely monochromatic nature of the laser results in improved efficiency and overall performance.
laser microscopy
Technique using functional optical microscope with the addition of a coherent source collinear with the image path. The laser light is intended to scan the sampled plane and acquire information from...
laser output
The laser output refers to the generated and emitted light produced by a laser system. This output is characterized by several key properties that distinguish lasers from other light sources. These...
laser photochemistry
The study concerned with the stimulation of chemical activity by laser light as a result of the absorption of photons by a molecule. Interaction of laser source with a molecular or atomic species....
laser strainmeter
An instrument usually consisting of a very long interferometer, 3 to 800 m, and a laser light source for the study and measurement of strain, such as those formed by earth tides and gravitational...
laser
A laser, which stands for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," is a device that produces coherent and focused beams of light through the process of optical amplification based...
LED -> light-emitting diode
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,...
levorotary
Characterizes a substance whose plane of polarization is rotated counterclockwise as the observer looks through the material toward the light source. The rotation is negative.
Lieberkuhn illumination -> oblique illumination
A common technique in microscopy, oblique illumination is one in which the object is illuminated by a light source that is at an oblique angle (on the side) to the optical axis. This technique is...
light balancing filter -> color conversion filter
A filter that serves to alter the color temperature and the mired value of the radiation emitted by a source.
light diffusion
Light diffusion refers to the process by which light is scattered or spread out in various directions as it interacts with a medium or material. Unlike direct transmission through a transparent...
light fidelity
LiFi, short for light fidelity, is a wireless communication technology that utilizes visible light or infrared light to transmit data. Developed as an alternative or complementary technology to...
light modulator
A device that is designed to modulate a beam of light, usually from a laser source, by acting upon the beam directly. The three general types of devices operate in an acousto-optic, electro-optic or...
light pencil
A narrow cone of light rays that diverge from a point source or converge to an image point.
light valve
With respect to display systems, a device that uses an independent light source and a control-layer medium, the active optical element, to convert an electrical charge image to an optical image....
light-emitting diode
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,...
Lloyd's mirror
A mirror employed with a very high incidence angle to form a pair of coherent light sources by reflection, and therefore forming interference bands.
low-coherence interference microscope
An interference microscope that uses a light beam originating from a low-coherence light source. The sample is placed in one interferometer arm, and the other arm provides a reference beam. The...
lumen
A lumen is a unit of measurement used to quantify the amount of luminous flux, which is the perceived power of light. In other words, the lumen measures the total amount of visible light emitted by a...
luminaire
A complete unit containing a light source, globe, reflector, housing, socket and other necessary components for lighting.
luminescence
Luminescence is the emission of light that occurs without the involved substance undergoing a significant increase in temperature. In other words, it is the production and emission of light by a...
luminous flux
Descriptive of the radiant power of visible light modified by the eye response. It is the measure of the flow of visible light energy past any given point in space in a given time period, and is...
machine vision lighting
Machine vision lighting refers to the use of specific lighting techniques and equipment in the field of machine vision, which is a technology that enables machines to capture and interpret visual...
magneto-optic readout device
A device using the Kerr effect to read back the signals from mechanically recorded tapes and discs. It consists of a light source, optical lenses to focus and direct the light beam, a pair of...
mask
1. A framelike structure that serves to restrict the viewing area of the screen when placed before a television picture tube. 2. In photolithography, a photomask (or mask) is typically a patterned...
masks for evaporation/deposition
In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit material onto substrates, creating patterns or structures with precise...
mcd
millicandela — The millicandela is equivalent to one thousandth (or 10-3) of the standard unit of luminous intensity that is the candela, which is the power emitted by a given light source in a particular direction.
mean spherical intensity
The average intensity of a light source measured over all directions.
mean spherical luminous intensity
The average luminous intensity of a point light source measured over all directions.
microbubble resonator
A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It consists of a micro-sized, gas-filled spherical cavity (the "microbubble")...
monochromatic illuminator -> monochromator
A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of light. The term monochromator is derived from "monochromatic," meaning...
monochromator
A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of light. The term monochromator is derived from "monochromatic," meaning...

Photonics Dictionary


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