Photonics Dictionary

Abbreviated SoC. A single chip containing all the electronic circuits required for a complete, working product. SoCs are similar to microcontroller technology but provide additional components. A SoC...

The law stating that the brightness of an object that is examined through a slotted disc, rotating over a critical frequency, is proportional to the angular aperture divided by the opaque sectors.

A device for extracting a portion of the optical signal from a fiber.

A waveguide having a characteristic that is altered continuously with the distance traveled, relative to the axis of its path.

States that in interferometers in which the separation of the maxima is equal to the half-value width, a slight drop in intensity between fringes is distinguishable and the fringes can be considered...

There are three types of telecentric lenses: -Image-space telecentric lenses are those in which the aperture stop is located at the front focus, resulting in the chief rays being parallel to the...

The science of sensing and measuring information at some remote location and transmitting the data to a convenient location for reading or recording.

The principles and techniques involved in the use of telephotometers to measure atmospheric extinction.

An afocal optical device made up of lenses or mirrors, usually with a magnification greater than unity, that renders distant objects more distinct, by enlarging their images on the retina.

A telescope lens is a primary optical component of a telescope system that gathers and focuses light to form an image. It is typically a curved, transparent piece of glass or other optical material...

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...

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.

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

In the SI system, prefix meaning 1012. (T).

Electromagnetic radiation with frequencies between 300 GHz and 10 THz, and existing between regions of the electromagnetic spectrum that are typically classified as the far-infrared and microwave...

A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz frequency range, typically spanning from about 0.1 to 10 terahertz (THz),...

Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1 and 10 terahertz. One terahertz is equivalent to one trillion hertz, or...

A transparent block shaped accurately to reverse curvatures of the components it is used to test. By contacting an accurately finished negative lens shape with a newly made positive, the conformity...

An instrument used to record infrared images of large areas. The recorded data are used to produce maps in false color indicating particular themes such as vegetation, cloud cover, temperature...

A technique for detecting free radicals by their electronic spectra. The material to be studied is placed in a temperature-controlled furnace through which radiation is propagated onto a...

A thermal-infrared camera, often referred to simply as a thermal camera, is a type of imaging device that detects infrared radiation emitted by objects due to their temperature. Unlike traditional...

Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are substances or compounds used to enhance the thermal conductivity between two surfaces in contact. These materials are primarily employed in electronic devices,...

A solid-state semiconducting structure (basically one of the bolometers) that changes electrical resistance with temperature. Materially, some kind of ceramic composition is used. A thermistor has...

A solar cell that uses a thermoelectric converter, consisting of two sheets of metal with a semiconductor sandwiched between them, to generate electricity.

Also known as analog thermogram. The resultant photograph, illustrating, in tones ranging from black to white, the spatial relationship of the infrared radiation temperatures of the different details...

Thermography is a technique that involves the use of an infrared imaging device, called a thermal camera or infrared camera, to detect and visualize the infrared radiation emitted by objects. This...

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of thermophotovoltaics. In a thermophotovoltaic system, thermal radiation from a heat...

A display device having a thermoplastic film as the control layer medium. The film, moving from a playoff reel, is scanned by an electron gun and melted by an RF heating unit. Deformation of the film...

A thin layer of a substance deposited on an insulating base in a vacuum by a microelectronic process. Thin films are most commonly used for antireflection, achromatic beamsplitters, color filters,...

Formulas designating the relationships between image distance, object distance, focal length, refractive index, etc., of a thin lens.

Thin-film deposition equipment refers to machinery and tools used in the process of depositing thin layers of material onto a substrate surface. This technique is commonly employed in various...

A memory device consisting of thin disks of a magnetic substance deposited on a nonmagnetic substrate for use in a computer.

In visual perception, the smallest difference in illumination perceived on the average.

In laser damage testing, the exposure of many sites of a sample to different intensities of laser irradiation to discover the point at which the laser induces failure of the material.

A family of semiconductor switching devices of which the silicon-controlled rectifier and the triac are most commonly used. They are fabricated from four positive and negative alternating layers.

A method of scanning in which a frame transfer device produces a continuous video image of a moving object by means of a stack of linear arrays aligned with and synchronized to the movement of the...

The time domain is a concept used in signal processing and analysis to describe signals in terms of their behavior over time. In the time domain, signals are represented as functions of time, showing...

Multiple exposures of holograms, one for each position of a vibrating image, that are used for vibration analysis and that yield a record of the time-averaged irradiance distribution at the hologram...