Photonics Dictionary

A beamsplitter is an optical device used to divide a beam of light into two or more separate beams, typically by reflecting a portion of the incident light while transmitting the remainder....

A device that obliterates the polarization of a polarized beam by reflecting the beam in all directions at right angles to its axis.

A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively transmit or reflect certain wavelengths of light while simultaneously absorbing...

A dichroic mirror, also known as a dichroic beamsplitter or interference filter beamsplitter, is an optical device that selectively reflects or transmits light based on its wavelength. Dichroic...

A fiber laser is a type of laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth ions such as erbium, ytterbium, or neodymium. Fiber lasers generate coherent light through...

The multiple beam form of Brewster's fringes formed when the two plane-parallel plates have high-reflecting surfaces.

A Mach-Zehnder interferometer is an optical device used to measure the phase difference between two collimated beams of light. It is named after the physicists Ludwig Mach and Ludwig Zehnder, who...

A mirror mount is a mechanical device used to secure and precisely position mirrors in optical systems. Mirrors are essential components in optical setups for reflecting light or redirecting laser...

The phenomenon that can render an optical resonator the equivalent of a semiconductor flip-flop. A bistable device will remain stable in two optical states, one of high transmission and another of...

A device used to detect and measure small amounts of rotation. The rotating object contains a reflecting surface from which a beam of light is reflected onto a positional detector. A large distance...

A five-sided prism containing two reflecting surfaces at 45° to each other, and two refracting faces perpendicular to the entering and emerging beams. The deviation angle of 90° is...

A 45-90-45° reflecting prism whose surfaces form the 90° angle reflecting the light beam through a total angle of 180°. The corners of the prism are rounded to minimize breakage and simplify...

A reflecting optic whose reflectivity is a function of the radial distance from the optic axis; can be used to convert a Gaussian beam to one of uniform cross section.

A galvanometer having a small mirror that is mounted on a moving element and that reflects a light beam onto a scale.

The diagnostic procedure that uses ultrasonic energy to probe the body and, with the help of laser beams, a reflecting membrane to produce a three-dimensional picture.