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Artificial Intelligence, AI, Deep Learning Dictionary Terms

Cooper pairs
The coupled pairs of electrons that carry supercurrents through the body of a superconductor, relative to a coherent...
hybrid cooler
A cryogenic cooler device that is an intermittent Joule-Thomson refrigerator with a passive radiator serving as the...
holographic camera
A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...
optical design software
Optical design software refers to specialized computer programs used by optical engineers, physicists, and designers to...
Becke line
A band of light that appears along the outer edge of a transparent material under microscopic investigation and that moves...
optoacoustic
Optoacoustic, or photoacoustic, refers to a phenomenon and related techniques that involve the generation of acoustic waves...
multiple invariance
Characteristic of optical correlators in which invariance to more than one distortion parameter per axis of the processor is...
swindle ghost image
A positive after-image that is maintained for a minute or more.
Lawson criterion
Defines the minimum operational standards for a self-sustaining fusion reactor as equivalence between energy released per...
pump laser
A pump laser is a type of laser used to provide the necessary energy to the gain medium of another laser or laser system,...
virtual reality
Virtual reality (VR) is a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional environment or experience that can be...
resonance
Resonance can be defined in various contexts, including physics, chemistry, and music. Here are definitions for resonance in...
pressing
A blank having basic surface curves attained by forming heat-softened glass that is pressed in a mold.
X resolution
X resolution is a measure of the number of pixels or data points along the horizontal axis of an image or display. It...
luminaire
A complete unit containing a light source, globe, reflector, housing, socket and other necessary components for lighting.
dichroic coating
A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively...
transverse mode
In the context of optics and lasers, a transverse mode refers to a specific spatial pattern of the electric field within the...
radargrammetry
The analysis of the photographs taken from the radar display of a survey aircraft and used when recording terrain that is...
photoreflectance
A noncontact form of electromodulation in which modulation of the electric field is caused by photo-excited electron-hole...
scotoscope
An instrument that uses an image intensifier to aid in the viewing of subjects in low-light-level environments.
interferometer
An interferometer is a scientific instrument that utilizes the principle of interference to measure differences in the path...
sheet grating
A three-dimensional grating designed with thin metal sheets to remain opaque to all but one specific and predetermined wave.
rectification
A technique used in photogrammetry to ensure parallelism during projection printing. Failure to do this will change a...
laser-light-scattering photometer
A scattering photometer using scattered light in the solid angle 4.51+0 19° with respect to the forward direction, and...
active medium
An active medium is a material or substance used in various optical devices and systems, where it plays a critical role in...
neodymium glass
Glass containing small quantities of neodymium oxide that is used as a filter plate in color television or as a lasing...
infrared lens
An infrared lens is an optical component specifically designed and optimized for transmitting, focusing, or manipulating...
heatseeker
A guided missile that uses an infrared sensor to detect and home in on an enemy target. The missile is guided by the high...
image dissector tube
An electron tube that is used as a camera tube for a television system. When the picture to be transmitted is focused on a...
image intensifier
An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized...
retroreflection
Retroreflection is a phenomenon in optics where light is reflected back toward its source, typically in a direction nearly...
circular dichroism
Circular dichroism (CD) is a spectroscopic technique used to study the structural characteristics of chiral (asymmetric)...
helium-neon laser
A helium-neon (HeNe) laser is a type of gas laser that emits visible red light at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. It operates...
mode hopping
Mode hopping in the context of lasers refers to a phenomenon where a laser system abruptly switches from one longitudinal...
coverslip
A coverslip, also known as a cover glass or cover slip, is a thin and flat piece of transparent material typically made of...
Craik-O'Brien effect
Observed when alterations in the luminous sterance at the contour of an object create the illusion of the outer zones...
scaling law
In coherence theory, an optical law put forth by physicist Emil Wolf that explains the behavior of light as it travels away...
excitation
1. The process by which an atom acquires energy sufficient to raise it to a quantum state higher than its ground state. 2....
ultraviolet coatings
Ultraviolet (UV) coatings are specialized optical coatings designed to operate in the ultraviolet region of the...
ordinary ray
The ray that has an isotropic speed and maintains a uniform polarization in all propagation directions when traveling in a...
microscope immersion fluid
The liquid used in microscopy to fill the space between the high-power objective lens and the microscope slide in order to...
fiber optic test equipment
Fiber optic test equipment encompasses a range of specialized tools and instruments designed to evaluate the performance and...
crust
A stain in a glass surface.
photovoltaic cell
A photovoltaic cell, commonly known as a solar cell, is a semiconductor device that directly converts light energy into...
whole slide imaging
Whole slide imaging (WSI), also known as virtual slide microscopy or digital pathology, is a technology that involves the...
Golgi Staining Technique
The Golgi staining technique (also called the black reaction) makes it possible to look at the nervous system by rendering...
automated optical inspection
Automated optical inspection (AOI) is a technology used in manufacturing processes, particularly in electronics, to...
forward-looking infrared
A night-vision device that uses one or more infrared transducers to scan a scene in the 3- to 5-µm or 8- to...
stereoscopic rangefinder
A rangefinder similar to a pair of binoculars with a long base, a dot or other wander mark provided in each eyepiece field,...
ratiometry
Ratiometry is a technique used in various scientific fields, particularly in analytical chemistry and biochemistry, to...
ghost
1. A faint second image caused by reflection that is sometimes seen when observing through an optical instrument. 2. With...
vertical imbalance
The difference in base up or down prism power at corresponding points located on the two lenses of a pair of spectacles.
helium leak detector
A small mass spectrometer used to find leaks in a vacuum system by detecting the presence of helium. Using a magnetic...
Pockels cell
A Pockels cell, also known as an electro-optic modulator, is an optical device used to control the polarization of light by...
rotating mirror scanner
Developed for use in military reconnaissance systems, it consists of a polygonal mirror, drive motor, interface between...
body
In the optical field, a piece of glass to which a lens or prism is cemented. The unit is ground and polished as a whole to...
laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy
Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an analytical technique that uses a high-powered laser pulse to ablate a...
binocular magnifier
A device having a pair of decentered lenses, one for each eye, that focuses on a single object as a magnifier. It is often...
smart microscopy
Smart microscopy refers to the integration of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), automation, and...
mosaic detector array
A group of photosensors arranged in a grid-like pattern covering the entire field of view, enabling them to record it all at...
microfilm equipment
Two essential pieces of equipment used in connection with the microfilming process: a camera capable of producing, on film,...
optics
Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter...
Rayleigh criterion of resolving power
When a lens system with a circular aperture is free of aberrations, the image of a point object will appear as a disc of...
ophthalmology
Ophthalmology is a branch of medicine that focuses on the anatomy, physiology, and diseases of the eyes and visual system....
long-wave infrared
Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...
pixel pitch
Pixel pitch refers to the distance between the centers of two adjacent pixels on a display screen or imaging sensor. It is...
metallic mesh filter
An interference filter in which a very thin metal foil with a periodic array of square holes (inductive mesh) or a thin...
lag
A term applied to an electric charge image in a camera tube that remains for a period of a few frames after its initial...
aliasing
In image processing, the result of a sampling frequency that is too slow to preserve the spatial frequencies of the image....
thermal imaging
Thermal imaging is a technology that detects infrared radiation (heat) emitted by objects and converts it into an image,...
avalanche photodiode
A device that utilizes avalanche multiplication of photocurrent by means of hole-electrons created by absorbed photons. When...
feedback control system
A system designed to control the output quantity of a device by returning a portion of its output signal to its input. This...
burst pressure
The measure used in vacuum technology to quantify the total pressure capacity of the ferrofluidic seal before it fails.
aperture distortion
A loss of resolution or detail in a television signal caused by the size of the electron scanning beam.
Franck-Condon principle
The principle that electronic energy transitions occur at such speeds that the nuclei of the atoms in the molecular system...
monocoil sheathing
A type of tubing used to protect optical fiber cables, consisting of a wire spiral of aluminum, galvanized steel or...
broadband dielectric mirrors
Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or...
secondary bow
The indistinct rainbow that may sometimes be observed outside the distinct primary bow and that has its colors in opposite...
photographic photometry
A form of photometric measurement, often used with light sources that are transparent or fluctuating, in which a...
fiber Bragg grating
A fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is a type of optical filter that is inscribed or "written" into the core of an optical fiber. It...
solid-state laser
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...
fiber optic cable assembly
A fiber optic cable assembly refers to a complete unit consisting of optical fibers, connectors, protective jackets, and...
reciprocity failure
stone
An opaque inclusion in glass that contains undissolved or crystalline material. Also known as a seed.
transmission electron microscope
A transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful microscopy technique that uses a beam of electrons to create...
iconoscope
A camera tube that employs a high-velocity electron beam to scan a photoemissive mosaic and to store electrical charge...
orthicon
A television camera tube in which a low-velocity electron beam scans a photoactive mosaic that has been created by an...
calcium indicator
A calcium indicator is a molecule that is sensitive to changes in calcium ion (Ca2+) concentrations in biological systems....
multijunction device
A photovoltaic device that consists of multiple p-n junctions to produce a greater efficiency when in use than that of...
gauze technique
The masking of all openings of an optical transform -- except the hole at the symmetrical center -- with a thin wire gauze...
gain coefficient
Glan-Foucault prism
A type of birefringent polarizing prism that transmits the extraordinary ray and removes the ordinary ray through total...
fan
A set of rays through a lens originating at a common point and contained in one plane.
actinic focus
Actinic focus refers to the point or plane within an optical system where ultraviolet (UV) light or other actinic radiation...
laser marking
Laser marking is a process in which a laser beam is used to mark or engrave a surface by altering its properties or...
photoacoustic
Photoacoustic refers to the generation of acoustic (sound) waves following the absorption of light (usually laser pulses) by...
light fidelity
LiFi, short for light fidelity, is a wireless communication technology that utilizes visible light or infrared light to...
laser cooling
Laser cooling is a technique used to reduce the temperature of a material or a collection of atoms or molecules by using...
radial distribution method
A statistical analysis of facts obtained when the intensity of x-ray diffraction is calculated at different angles. In this...
aplanatic points
Aplanatic points refer to specific points in an optical system where certain aberrations, such as spherical aberration or...
scanning electron microscopy
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to obtain high-resolution,...
modulation transfer function analysis/measurement equipment
MTF analysis/measurement equipment refers to instruments and tools used to measure and analyze the modulation transfer...
magnifying power
The ability of an optical system to make an object appear larger. An optical element or optical system causing an object to...
specular reflection
Pertaining to the manner in which light is reflected, as by a mirror or speculum.
linear positioning stage
A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...
Airy disc
The central peak (including everything interior to the first zero or dark ring) of the focal diffraction pattern of a...
double slit
A pair of long, slender parallel apertures used in experiments on diffraction and interference.
radix
Total number of characters available to each position of a digital numeric system.
barrier layer
In the fabrication of an optical fiber, a layer that can be used to create a boundary against OH-ion diffusion into the core.
measuring wedge
A wedge in a rangefinder or heightfinder used to displace the image produced by one telescope so that it coincides with that...
magnetorheological finishing
Magnetorheological finishing (MRF) is a precision optics polishing technique used for shaping and finishing optical surfaces...
CCD image sensor
A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images...
ultraviolet light sources
Ultraviolet (UV) light sources are devices that emit light in the ultraviolet spectrum, which ranges from about 10 nm to 400...
prelasing
When uncontrolled laser energy leaks from a laser cavity prematurely, it causes serious damage to optical components and...
photoluminescence
Photoluminescence is a phenomenon in which a material absorbs photons (light) at one wavelength and then re-emits photons at...
gyroscopy
Gyroscopy refers to the principles and applications of gyroscopes, devices that measure or maintain orientation based on the...
photoemulsion
In photolithography, an opaque material used in masks that has a lower optical density and grainier composition than chrome.
augmented reality
Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that integrates digital information, typically in the form of computer-generated...
neutral density coating
A coating applied to a neutral density glass that is designed to reduce the amount of light evenly across the transmitted...
neural network
A computing paradigm that attempts to process information in a manner similar to that of the brain; it differs from...
adiabatic laser colorimetry
Adiabatic laser colorimetry is a technique used to measure the color of materials based on the principle of adiabatic...
splice closure
A container which secures multiple splice trays and protects the trays and their contents from damage.
gallium arsenide injection laser
A laser system consisting of a planar PN junction within a single crystal of gallium arsenide. The pair of parallel,...
chronophotograph
The continuous record containing the series of pictures formed by chronophotographic methods.
lymphocyte
A lymphocyte is a type of white blood cell (leukocyte) that plays a central role in the immune system. Lymphocytes are...
cosine law of illumination
Law relating the illuminance (or irradiance) of a surface to the cosine of the angle, q, between the normal to the surface...
plume
A mixture of ionized gas and metal vapor generated by impingement of the laser beam onto a material being welded or a weld...
tunneling
An observed effect of the ability of certain atomic particles to pass through a barrier that they cannot pass over because...
focus control
1. A mechanism that permits the focusing of an optical system.2. A means of obtaining the sharpest image from a cathode-ray...
optical strain sensors
Optical strain sensors are devices that utilize optical principles to measure the deformation or strain experienced by a...
spectroradiometer
A spectroradiometer is a device used to measure the intensity of light at different wavelengths across the electromagnetic...
metrology
Metrology is the science and practice of measurement. It encompasses the theoretical and practical aspects of measurement,...
optical bistability
The phenomenon that can render an optical resonator the equivalent of a semiconductor flip-flop. A bistable device will...
gain-switching
Gain-switching is a technique used in lasers to generate short pulses of light by modulating the gain of the laser medium....
optical glass
Optical glass refers to a type of glass specifically engineered and manufactured for use in optical components and systems,...
dust counter
An instrument that uses a photoelectric system to determine the size and volume of dust particles in a given unit of air.
pair production
The production of a positron-electron pair by a photon having energy greater than one mega-electron-volt, whereby some of...
actinism
Actinism refers to the property of radiation, particularly light, that enables it to produce photochemical effects. This...
focus
1. The focal point. 2. To adjust the eyepiece or objective of a telescope so that the image is clearly seen by the observer....
photochromic
Photochromic refers to a property exhibited by certain materials, typically organic compounds or dyes, which undergo...
sensitometry
Primarily the measurement of photographic sensitivity of certain materials such as photographic film. It refers to the...
circular-ranging optical coherence tomography
Circular-ranging optical coherence tomography (CR-OCT) is a specialized imaging technique used in medical diagnostics and...
grain boundary
In a multicrystalline material, the meeting point between crystallites.
optical artifacts
Optical artifacts refer to undesired or unintended effects that can occur in optical systems, such as microscopes, cameras,...
cleanroom
An area in which airborne particulates can be monitored and controlled so that given size particles do not exceed a...
optical clock
An optical clock is a highly precise and advanced timekeeping device that relies on the oscillations of electromagnetic...
cooled infrared detector
An infrared detector that achieves a specified sensitivity through the application of certain cryogenic temperatures.
superluminal transmission
Superluminal transmission refers to the hypothetical process of transmitting information faster than the speed of light,...
evaporagraph
A sensor generally used for infrared imaging. It consists of two chambers separated by a thin, blackened membrane. An...
optical filter
An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical...
Secondary Speckle Pattern
A self-interference effect that generates random patterns; secondary speckle pattern (SSP) typically occurs in diffuse...
electrowetting display
An electrowetting display (EWD) is a type of electronic display technology that utilizes the principles of electrowetting to...
voltaic cell
An electric cell having two electrodes of unlike metals immersed in a solution that chemically affects one or both of them,...
polymer
Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...
glass
A noncrystalline, inorganic mixture of various metallic oxides fused by heating with glassifiers such as silica, or boric or...
back-wall photovoltaic cell
A photovoltaic cell designed so that light travels through the front electrode and a semiconductor before it comes to the...
cylindrical lens
A cylindrical lens is an optical component that has different curvatures along its two orthogonal axes, resulting in a shape...
American Chemical Society
The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in...
photon flux
Photon flux refers to the rate at which photons (particles of light) pass through a unit area per unit time. It is a measure...
bandgap
In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....
periscope
An optical instrument designed to displace the line of sight in a vertical direction. For submarines and other military uses...
thermal interface materials
Thermal interface materials (TIMs) are substances or compounds used to enhance the thermal conductivity between two surfaces...
linear polarization
Linear polarization refers to the polarization state of light where the electric field oscillates in a single plane as the...
charge-coupled device
A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital...
fiber-coupled LED
A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the...
thermogram
Also known as analog thermogram. The resultant photograph, illustrating, in tones ranging from black to white, the spatial...
atomic force microscope
An atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high-resolution imaging and measurement instrument used in nanotechnology, materials...
mode filling factor
In a laser, the fraction of plasma volume used by a particular transverse mode of oscillation, a determinant of the gain...
Airy differential equation
The equation devised by Sir G.B. Airy for the analysis of light diffraction near a caustic surface: (d2f/dz2) - zf = 0 where...
gyroscopic camera mount
A mount that uses a floating suspension and a motor-driven gyroscope to keep a motion picture or still camera at a set angle...
ring-laser gyroscope
A ring laser gyroscope (RLG) is a type of gyroscope that uses laser light to detect and measure changes in orientation. It...
single-mode waveguide (or fiber)
An optical waveguide in which only the lowest order bound mode, which may consist of a pair of orthogonally polarized...
pellicle mirror
A thin, stretched plastic membrane cemented to a rigid supporting ring. It may be coated to act as a beamsplitter, for...
stereoscope
A small instrument containing a picture support and a pair of magnifying lenses so arranged that the left eye sees only the...
double-clad fiber
Double-clad fiber (DCF) is a specialized optical fiber that features two concentric cladding layers surrounding a core. The...
Risley prism
A Risley prism, also known as a Risley prism pair or Risley rotating prism, is an optical device used for controlling the...
half bandwidth
The term half bandwidth (HBW) generally refers to the width of a spectral band or frequency range at half of its maximum...
inefficient shutter
A shutter in which the opening and closing times for a large aperture setting occupy a substantial fraction of the total...
absolute luminance threshold
The absolute luminance threshold is the lowest luminance level of a light source or illuminated object that can be detected...
pointer eyepiece
A Huygenian eyepiece containing a pointer at its focal plane that is used -- when viewing an object through the eyepiece --...
gallium arsenide phosphide
Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...
continuous strobe
A continuous strobe, also known as a continuous light or constant light strobe, is a type of lighting device used in...
light-emitting diode
An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...
zirconium arc
A small bulb containing a conducting gas, an arc being formed between a metal ring and a tiny zirconium electrode near the...
monomer exchange diffusion
Process that occurs when a polymerized soft plastic rod with higher refractive index is placed in a bath of a lower...
lasing threshold
The lowest excitation power level at which a laser's output is mainly the result of stimulated emission rather than...
nonlinear optics
Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a...
fractional photothermolysis
A laser skin-resurfacing method that creates microscopic thermal wounds referred to as microscopic treatment zones (MTZs),...
teloscopy
Teloscopy, while not a commonly used term, could be understood in the context of principles related to telescopes and their...
free-abrasive machining
The process whereby a rotating wheel carries grains of an abrasive, suspended in a vehicle, across the surface of the...
video graphics array
The video graphics array (VGA) is a display resolution standard introduced by IBM in 1987 for displaying graphics on...
maser
A maser (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic...
panoramic telescope
A telescope so manufactured that the image remains erect and the position of the eyepiece is unchanged as the line of sight...
astronomical telescope
An astronomical telescope is a type of optical instrument designed to gather and magnify light from distant celestial...
cresyl violet
Cresyl violet, also known as cresyl violet acetate or cresyl echt violet, is a synthetic organic compound belonging to the...
fused array of fibers
Optical fibers fused together to form a solid, vacuum-tight assembly in the form of a slab or rod. Discs or rectangular...
actuator
An actuator is a mechanical or electromechanical device that is responsible for moving or controlling a mechanism or system....
spatial light interference microscopy
Spatial light interference microscopy (SLIM) is an optical microscopy technique that belongs to the category of quantitative...
optical time-domain reflectometry
A method for characterizing a fiber wherein an optical pulse is transmitted through the fiber, and the resulting light...
photodarkening
The effect that the optical losses in a medium can grow when the medium is irradiated with light at certain wavelengths.
double refraction
The separation of unpolarized light into two plane-polarized elements by a doubly refracting crystal. When a crystal, such...
orange peel
In the context of imaging, particularly digital imaging and printing, "orange peel" refers to a texture or visual distortion...
cryostat
A cryostat is a device used to maintain very low temperatures, typically below the boiling point of liquid nitrogen (77 K or...
surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an analytical technique that combines the principles of Raman spectroscopy...
sputtering equipment
Sputtering equipment is machinery used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....
spectral flow cytometry
Spectral flow cytometry is an advanced flow cytometry technique that expands the capabilities of traditional flow cytometry...
intelligent vision systems
Intelligent vision systems combine traditional computer vision techniques with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine...
mosaic mirror
A large telescope mirror fabricated from several smaller sections.
color temperature meter
A device containing two photocells behind deep red and blue filters to measure color temperatures. The amplifier gain is...
camera
A light-tight box that receives light from an object or scene and focuses it to form an image on a light-sensitive material...
photoelectric photometry
The use of photoelectric sensors to detect and measure the intensity of a light source. This application, as compared to...
eye guard
A shield of rubber, plastic or metal used to protect the eyes of the observer from stray light and wind, and to maintain the...
saccadic motion
The movement of the eye as it focuses on details of a scene. Some imaging systems mimic this movement by small, rapid...
laser cavity
A laser cavity, also known as an optical cavity or resonator, is a fundamental component of a laser system. It is a confined...
heterojunction
A heterojunction is a junction formed between two different semiconductor materials with differing band gaps. These...
gain-guided laser
A laser diode in which the beam is confined to the region of the active layer with gain high enough to accomplish such...
noncontact automatic inspection systems
Noncontact inspection systems are advanced measurement and inspection technologies that evaluate the properties and...
beam waist
That point in a Gaussian beam where the wavefront has a curvature of zero and the beam diameter is a minimum.
AI system-on-chip
An AI system-on-chip (SoC) is an integrated circuit that integrates hardware components optimized for performing AI...
knife-edge scanning microscope
An imaging device originally created to image whole mouse brain volumes at microscopic resolution. The main component of the...
constant variant enhancement
Technique that uses high-pass filtering to reduce the local average to zero for all regions of the picture and then applies...
atomic absorption spectrometer
An atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) is an analytical instrument used to determine the concentration of specific chemical...
gallium arsenide
Gallium arsenide (GaAs) is a compound semiconductor material composed of gallium (Ga) and arsenic (As). It belongs to the...
structural character recognition
An approach to character recognition based on the structure of the character to be identified (number of straight lines,...
pairing
In interlaced television scanning, an effect in which the lines of one field fail to fall exactly within the lines of the...
beauty defect
A defect on or in an optical element that does not appreciably impair the function of the surface.
clinometer
An instrument for measuring the vertical angle of an object. It usually contains an accurately made protractor, a sensitive...
Raman fiber probe
A flexible fiber cable with a small diameter that transports light from the excitation laser to the target. Used in Raman...
system-on-chip
A system-on-chip (SoC) is an integrated circuit (IC) that incorporates all necessary components of a computer or electronic...
digital twin
A digital twin refers to a virtual representation or digital counterpart of a physical object, system, or process. This...
second-harmonic generation
Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is a nonlinear optical process that occurs when two photons with the same frequency combine...
twisted intramolecular charge transfer
Twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) is a phenomenon observed in certain organic molecules containing...
flat optical-quality mirrors
Flat optical-quality mirrors are highly precise reflective surfaces used in various optical applications where the quality...
CID camera
CID, or charge injection device, camera refers to a type of imaging device that utilizes a specific kind of solid-state...
Fresnel reflection
Fresnel reflection refers to the reflection of light at the interface between two different media with different refractive...
responsivity
The gain that occurs between light intensity incident on a CCD given by the photocurrent produced.
photoacoustic spectroscopy
A method for obtaining the optical absorption spectra of solids, semisolids, liquids and gases. PAS is inherently...
image motion compensation
The active control of various aspects (optical element position, airspace thickness, etc.) of an optical system that...
activity (radioactivity)
Radioactivity refers to the spontaneous emission of radiation from the nucleus of an unstable atom. This emission occurs as...
quasi-CW laser
A laser that generates a succession of pulses at a high enough repetition rate to appear continuous. The pump source is...
sextant
A handheld navigational instrument used to measure the elevation angle of celestial bodies such as the sun. An image of the...
photronic cell
A photovoltaic cell usually sensitive to infrared radiation. It may have a copper base and a film of cuprous oxide. When it...
pencil beam
In astronomy, the main lobe of an antenna pattern that has a small angular extent in two mutually perpendicular directions....
quantum well
A quantum well is a structure in quantum mechanics that confines particles, such as electrons or holes, in one spatial...
Brillouin microscopy
Brillouin microscopy is a non-invasive imaging technique that utilizes Brillouin scattering to measure the mechanical...
quantum detector
A photodetector in which an electrical charge is produced when incident photons change electrons within the detecting...
ferromagnetism
The properties of certain materials that cause them to have relative permeabilities that exceed unity. This permeability...
internet of things
The internet of things (IoT) refers to a network of interconnected physical devices, vehicles, appliances, and other objects...
critical flicker frequency
Relative to a light source, the frequency at which the source appears to fluctuate in light intensity half the time and...
multi-axis alignment
Multi-axis alignment refers to the process of aligning or adjusting components or systems in multiple spatial dimensions or...
chromophore
A naturally occurring pigment in tissue that may selectively absorb certain wavelengths and can be used to aid in targeting...
cathode-ray tube faceplate
A fiber optic end plate constructed by drawing a bundle of parallel fibers embedded in glass and cutting it into thin...
fiber optic gyroscope
A fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) is a type of gyroscope that uses the interference of light waves to detect changes in...
aperture card
A combination 80-column computer card containing a 35-mm microfilm frame. Reference data can be punched onto the card to...
linear motion
Linear motion is the movement of an object or particle along a straight path in a single direction. It is one of the...
sensor
1. A generic term for detector. 2. A complete optical/mechanical/electronic system that contains some form of radiation...
cartesian
Of or pertaining to the methods of the French philosopher Rene Descartes. Refers to the standard orthogonal X-Y-Z coordinate...
connectome
A connectome refers to a comprehensive map or diagram of neural connections within the brain or nervous system of an...
data acquisition software
Data acquisition software is a type of application or system designed to capture, process, and store data from various...
supercontinuum
Supercontinuum refers to a broad spectrum of light that spans a wide range of wavelengths, typically from the visible to the...
linearity
A relationship between two variables so that when plotted on a graph they yield a straight line.
quantum repeater
A quantum repeater is a crucial component in quantum communication networks, designed to extend the range over which quantum...
intrinsic photoconductivity
The absorption of a photon raising an electron across the forbidden gap from valence to conduction band of the semiconductor...
Nichols radiometer
An instrument devised by Nichols and Hull for use in the measurement of radiation pressure. The device has two small...
parallel-plate waveguide
A pair of waveguides with axes normal to the plane and that guide uniform cylindrical waves.
dark-field condenser
A condenser that forms a hollow cone-shaped beam of light with its focal point in the plane of the specimen. If it is used...
Haidinger fringes
Also known as constant angle or constant deviation fringes. The interference fringes observed with dense flat plates near...
clinical photography
The application of photography, with the exception of radiography, to obtain pictures of parts or the whole of a patient to...
ion
An atom that has gained or lost one or more electrons and, as a result, carries a negative or positive charge.
achirality
Achirality refers to the property of a molecule or object that is superimposable on its mirror image. In other words, an...
mode locking
Mode locking is a technique used in optics and laser physics to generate short pulses of light with extremely high peak...
adaptometer
An adaptometer is an instrument used to assess the adaptation of the human eye's sensitivity to changes in ambient light...
semiconductor
A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In...
image jump
In optics, the term image jump refers to a displacement or shift in the apparent position of an image when a change occurs...
photoacoustic imaging
Abbreviated PAI. An imaging modality with a hybrid technique based on the acoustic detection of optical absorption from...
single-photon avalanche diode
A single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) is a specialized type of photodetector designed to detect extremely weak optical...
borescope
A device for the internal inspection of hard-to-get-at mechanical parts, such as rifle barrels, sewer pipes, oil wells, or...
holography
Holography is a technique used to capture and reconstruct three-dimensional images using the principles of interference and...
photovoltaic detector
optoelectronic integrated circuit
A monolithic device containing both photonic and electronic sources, detectors, modulators, etc., on a single semiconductor...
ophthalmic photography
The methods and techniques used to obtain medical photographs of the human eye. To photograph the exterior of the eye,...
optical parametric amplification
Optical parametric amplification (OPA) is a process in nonlinear optics where a weak signal beam is amplified by a much...
vibrational spectroscopy
Vibrational spectroscopy is a type of spectroscopy that involves the study of the vibrational states of molecules. It is...
gyroscope
A gyroscope is a mechanical device consisting of a spinning disk or wheel mounted on a spinning axis in such a way that its...
3D profiling
3D profiling, also known as three-dimensional profiling, refers to the process of capturing, analyzing, and visualizing the...
vacuum gauge
A gauge designed to measure the degree of vacuum in an evacuated vessel. A simple U-tube containing mercury is adequate for...
cladding
The low-refractive-index material that surrounds the core of an optical fiber to contain core light while protecting against...
wide-field fluorescence microscopy
Wide-field fluorescence microscopy uses either naturally occurring structures or staining with fluorescent tags that are...
optical surface
A reflecting or refracting surface contained within an optical system.
phage
A phage, short for bacteriophage, is a type of virus that infects and replicates within bacteria. Phages are composed of...
pleochroism
The property exhibited by certain birefringent crystals in which the degree with which they transmit polarized light is...
visible
That term pertaining to the spectral region that can be perceived by the eye.
biocular
A term pertaining to devices (generally optical) designed for use with both eyes viewing through a single exit pupil. The...
hyperspectral imaging
Hyperspectral imaging is an advanced imaging technique that captures and processes information from across the...
vernier acuity
The degree to which a pair of fine lines can be aligned to each other. A normal observer will demonstrate an accuracy of 10...
retina
The retina is a light-sensitive tissue layer located at the back of the eye, opposite the lens. It plays a crucial role in...
photon sieve
A photon sieve is an optical device used in the field of optics and imaging. It's designed to focus and shape light,...
NTSC triangle
The triangle in a chromaticity diagram joining the chromaticities of the NTSC phosphors, and containing all chromaticities...
logic diagram
A diagram that uses special symbols called logic symbols to represent the detailed functioning of electronic logic circuits....
laser output
The laser output refers to the generated and emitted light produced by a laser system. This output is characterized by...
rectilinear propagation
Straight line travel. This denotes the fact that light travels in a straight line when traveling through a medium with a...
gamma ray
The spontaneous emittance of electromagnetic radiation by the nucleus of certain radioactive elements during their quantum...
carbonaceous
Consisting of, containing, pertaining to or yielding carbon.
cutting laser systems
Cutting laser systems are advanced machines that use focused laser beams to cut, engrave, or mark materials with high...
depth of field
The distance, on either side of the object plane focused on, through which satisfactory image definition can be obtained....
scintillation detector
A scintillation detector is a radiation detection device that utilizes scintillation crystals to detect and measure ionizing...
silicon photodiode
A silicon photodiode is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It is a type of photodetector...
phase-change optical disc
An erasable data recording and storage medium that uses a laser to heat the crystalline surface of the disc to a certain...
molecular motor
A molecular motor refers to a nano-sized device composed of organic molecules or other small-scale components that can...
laser pointer
Handheld optical laser device containing a semiconductor or DPSS source. The output is corrected via internal collimating...
plastic lens
A lens made from transparent plastic material. Lenses over 31/2 in. in diameter are usually machined, ground and polished....
vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser
A laser that has a surface-emitting semiconductor gain element coupled to an external mirror designed to complete the laser...
active transport
Active transport is a biological process by which cells move molecules or ions across their cell membrane against their...
deep multiphoton microscopy
Deep multiphoton microscopy is an advanced imaging technique used in biological and biomedical research to visualize...
BCS theory
Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer theory of superconductivity, based on the notion that electrons with opposite momentum and spin...
equatorial mount
A telescope stand equipped with a polar axis that can be set parallel to the Earth's axis of rotation and a declination axis...
soliton laser
A color center laser whose output is coupled to an external control laser cavity and then fed back to the main laser cavity...
field effect transistor photodetector
A photodetector employing photoregeneration of carriers in the channel region of an FET structure to provide photodetection...
airglow
Diffuse light emitted by the atmosphere due to the excitation of particles of atmospheric gas. These excited particles...
entrainment
The movement of particulate material by flowing gas or liquid.
anamorphic
A term used to denote a difference in magnification along mutually perpendicular meridians. Anamorphic systems are basically...
electro-optic detector
A device that detects radiation by utilizing the influence of light in forming an electrical signal. It may be a phototube;...
q-switched operation
Q-switched operation, or q-switching, is a technique used in lasers to produce short and intense pulses of light. The term...
substrate
A substrate refers to a material or surface upon which another material or process is applied or deposited. In various...
enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is a laboratory technique used to detect and measure the presence of specific...
photochemical
The term photochemical pertains to chemical processes or reactions that are initiated or influenced by the absorption of...
thermoplastic recording device
A display device having a thermoplastic film as the control layer medium. The film, moving from a playoff reel, is scanned...
decimation
The process of reducing the size of an image by removing a certain proportion of the samples produced from the original...
attosecond photonics sources
Attosecond photonics sources refer to devices or systems that generate extremely short pulses of light on the order of...
fiber optic sensor
A fiber optic sensor is a device that uses optical fibers to detect and measure physical, chemical, biological, or...
speckle imaging
A technique for obtaining improved resolution of images produced by large telescopes and distorted by the effects of...
abridged spectrophotometer
An abridged spectrophotometer refers to a simplified or compact version of a traditional spectrophotometer, which is a...
RTSP protocol
RTSP, or real-time streaming protocol, is a network control protocol designed for controlling streaming media servers. It is...
thin-film coating
Thin-film coatings are layers of material applied to the surface of an object or substrate, typically to modify its optical,...
soft mold blocking
Blocking by means of a pitch ring, pitch button or a totally pitched block. Pitch, containing a soft filter, may be used...
phototheranostics
Phototheranostics, a portmanteau of "photo" (light), "therapy," and "diagnostics," refers to an emerging field that combines...
metabolite
A metabolite is any small molecule that is a product of metabolism, the chemical processes that occur within living...
dye laser
A laser using a dye solution as its active medium. Its output is a short pulse of broad spectral content and its achievable...
illuminated table
A desklike apparatus with an opal glass surface illuminated from beneath by fluorescent tubes. It is equipped with roll...
luminous
Pertaining to electromagnetic radiation as perceived by the eye; that is, with the contributions as wavelengths in the...
thin-film deposition
Thin-film deposition is a process used to deposit a thin layer of material onto a substrate surface, typically ranging from...
picture monitor
A kinescope used to survey the details of television video transmission.
aerial camera
Camera designed for the imaging of the earth's surface in order to obtain high quality aerial images
color center
A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...
compensating glass
Also known as clear glass or clear filter. The clear glass plate is used to simulate a filter, in converging or diverging...
swept source optical coherence tomography
Swept-source optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...
linear plastic
A term for thermoplastic optical materials; that is, those in which the polymer chains remain linear after heating and...
dark-field photomicrography
A photomicrographic recording technique that utilizes dark-field illumination to render an image of an object having a...
spatial resolution
Spatial resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in an image or a spatial dataset. It is a measure of the...
interfacial angle
That angle found between a pair of adjacent faces of a crystal.
antisolar point
The point to which the extension of the straight line, reaching from the sun to the observer's eye after penetrating the...
integrated photonics
Integrated photonics is a field of study and technology that involves the integration of optical components, such as lasers,...
differential interference contrast microscopy
Differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, also known as Nomarski interference contrast microscopy, is an optical...
intrinsic detector
A photodetector composed of a photoconductive material that, when exposed to radiation, conducts without the aid of added...
convolutional neural network
A powerful and flexible machine-learning approach that can be used in machine vision to help solve difficult problems....
volumetric imaging
Volumetric imaging refers to the capture, visualization, and analysis of three-dimensional (3D) information from a volume of...
laser anemometry
The process by which laser emission is used in measuring fluid velocity and, more specifically, the detection of air and...
arc light source
In present usage, especially for spectroscopic identification, an arc between electrodes that serves as a radiation source....
imagery rectification
Photogrammetric compensation for incidental camera movement (which prevents attainment of true vertical photographs) whereby...
label-free
Label-free refers to a technique or method that does not require the use of additional labels, tags, or markers to detect or...
phototheodolite
A camera equipped with angular scales in altitude and azimuth. The scale readings are imprinted on the film when an exposure...
otoscope
An otoscope is a medical device used by healthcare professionals, particularly ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists,...
blind approach beacon system
A ground-based navigation beacon that emits pulsed signals which are picked up by aircraft making an instrument (blind)...
absolute white
Absolute white is a term used in color science and imaging to describe a reference white point that represents the...
common optoelectronics laser detection system
A laser warning and countermeasure system containing a sensor that indicates the direction of a laser beam, and analytical...
optical time-domain reflectometer
An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) is a specialized instrument used in optical fiber communications to characterize...
axis
A straight line, real or imaginary, passing through a body and indicating its center; a line so positioned that various...
actinometer
An actinometer is a device used to measure the intensity of radiation, particularly solar radiation or light, often with a...
single attachment station
In a dual-ring local area network, a node that is connected only to the primary, active ring and not to the secondary ring...
cathode
A cathode is an electrode through which electric current flows out of a polarized electrical device. In different contexts,...
dual attachment station
In a dual-ring local area network, a node that is connected both to the primary, active ring and also to a secondary ring...
resolution target
A chart on paper or glass containing a series of sets of lines at progressively smaller spacing and used to ascertain the...
rugate
Bearing alternate ridges and grooves; corrugated. Said of some optical surfaces.
echelle grating
A specialized form of diffraction grating consisting of assembled glass plates of equal thickness that resemble a flight of...
motion controller
In optics, a motion controller refers to a device or system that precisely controls the movement of optical components, such...
nonlinear crystal
A nonlinear crystal is a type of crystal that exhibits nonlinear optical properties when subjected to intense...
stereo compilation
Extraction of three-dimensional measurements from a stereo pair of photographs.
heliostat
A device having a plane mirror so mounted that it can be set to reflect sunlight into a piece of laboratory equipment. It is...
Bunsen-Roscoe law
The law stating that the amount of chemical change produced is proportional to the amount of light absorbed. Actually, the...
sun-tracking concentrator
Controlled beam technology that introduces beams of sunlight through holes in a roof that are relayed throughout the...
opal glass
A material consisting of very small colorless particles imbedded in a clear glass matrix. It is available in two forms:...
deep ultraviolet
Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the...
lens blank
A lens blank is a piece of optical material in a raw, unfinished state, typically in the form of a disk or block, from which...
3D scanners
3D scanners are devices used to capture the three-dimensional shape and characteristics of physical objects or environments....
brightfield
Brightfield refers to a type of microscopy and imaging technique in which the specimen is illuminated with a white light...
high-power laser windows
High-power laser windows are specialized optical components designed to transmit laser beams while withstanding the high...
photon jet
A photon jet is a narrow, highly collimated beam of light that is formed when light interacts with small dielectric...
recrystallization
The growth of particular grain fragments in a metal or alloy, at the expense of others, that occurs when the metal or alloy...
mask proximity correction
A technique used in photolithography of computer chips to compensate for errors caused by the proximity effect, which...
absolute colorimetric
Absolute colorimetric refers to a color management rendering intent used in color profiles and conversion processes,...
sapphire window
A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of...
polymerase chain reaction
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a widely used molecular biology technique used to amplify a specific segment of DNA...
spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is a technique used in the study of interactions between matter and electromagnetic radiation. It involves...
metamaterial
Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties not found in naturally occurring substances. These...
indium gallium arsenide
Indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) is a semiconductor compound composed of indium (In), gallium (Ga), and arsenic (As). It...
boson
A boson is a type of fundamental particle that follows Bose-Einstein statistics, which dictate the statistical distribution...
quantum sensing
Quantum sensing refers to a class of sensing technologies that leverage principles from quantum mechanics to enhance the...
skyrmion
A skyrmion is a topologically stable, vortex-like configuration of spins in a magnetic material. These configurations are...
compound crosspoint
A device for obtaining very low crosstalk in a crosspoint by arranging two simple switches along different arms of a passive...
relative index
The ratio of the velocities of light in two adjacent media, neither of which is air.
catoptric system
An optical system in which the only image-forming elements are curved-surface mirrors; e.g., a Cassegrain lens system.
linear image sensor
A linear image sensor is a type of solid-state electronic device used to capture and convert light into electrical signals....
strain measuring equipment
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...
biomimicry
Biomimicry, or biomimetic design, is the practice of emulating natural processes, systems, and structures found in...
hysteresis
This term literally means "to lag behind.'' It is quite often used to describe the residual effect that remains after...
inductance
Inductance is a fundamental property of an electrical circuit or component that describes its ability to store energy in a...
pigtail
A short length of optical fiber permanently fixed to a component and used to couple power between it and the transmission...
GRIN lens
A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...
quantum dot thin films
Quantum dot thin films refer to thin layers or coatings composed of quantum dots deposited onto a substrate surface. Quantum...
American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) is a prominent professional association of astronomers and other scientists...
machine learning
Machine learning (ML) is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on the development of algorithms and...
Geiger counter
Also called Geiger-Müller counter. An instrument designed to detect and measure radioactivity through the use of a...
camera chain
The term sometimes used to describe the sequential arrangement of components in a video system -- from transmitter to...
neon tube
An electron tube containing neon gas that uses the transmission of an electric current through the gas to ionize the neon...
isolator
In the context of electronics and optics, an isolator refers to a device that allows the transmission of signals in one...
aerotriangulation
In aerial photography, the geometric method of indicating the three-dimensional location of ground points from a pair of...
coupler
1. In color development, the chemical that combines with certain by-products of the development procedure to form a dye. 2....
electron microscope
A device utilizing an electron beam for the observation and recording of submicroscopic samples with the aid of photographic...
Zerodur
Zerodur is a type of glass ceramic material known for its exceptional thermal and mechanical properties, particularly its...
rectilinear
In a straight line. When applied to a lens, it indicates that images of straight lines formed by the lens are not distorted.
freeform optics
Freeform optics refers to the design and fabrication of optical surfaces that do not follow traditional symmetric shapes,...
optical parametric chriped-pulse amplification
Optical parametric chirped-pulse amplification (OPCPA) is an advanced technique used in ultrafast laser systems to amplify...
read-out integrated circuit
A read-out integrated circuit (ROIC) is an electronic device used in imaging systems, particularly in infrared (IR) and...
Raman spectrometer laser systems
Raman spectrometer laser systems are specialized instruments used to perform Raman spectroscopy, a technique that provides...
optical testing instrument
An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and...
inline inspection
Inline inspection involves performing quality checks, measurements, or tests on products or materials while they are being...
fiber optic bundles
Fiber optic bundles consist of multiple optical fibers grouped together within a common protective sheath or coating. These...
metasurfaces
Metasurfaces are two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength-scale artificial structures, often referred to as meta-atoms or...
marking laser systems
Marking laser systems are advanced devices that use laser beams to create permanent marks, patterns, or engravings on...
atmospheric refraction correlation
Formulaic compensation to correct laser ranging data for the effects of horizontal refractivity gradients; it requires the...
magnitude
In astronomy, the relative brightness of a celestial body. Originally a scale from 1 to 6, where 1 represented the brightest...
beacon
A device, either visual or electronic, that emits signals to identify set positions for use in the navigation of aircraft...
very long baseline interferometry
Consists of a pair of radio telescopes concentrated on a single celestial object. This technique creates a single radio...
double-pass transmittance hologram
A hologram having an object wave that has been transmitted through the transparent object media to a mirror, reflected again...
polarizing filter
A filter that polarizes light passing through it. It is possible to fabricate sheets of plastic or gelatin that contain...
thermophotovoltaic
Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of...
C-mount lens
A C-mount lens refers to a specific type of lens commonly used in machine vision, surveillance, microscopy, and other...
micro-optical coherence tomography
Micro-optical coherence tomography (micro-OCT) is an imaging technique that is an adaptation of optical coherence tomography...
liquid marble
Liquid marble refers to a unique form of microscale liquid encapsulation, where small droplets of liquid are coated with a...
chemical sensing
Chemical sensing refers to the detection and measurement of specific chemical compounds or substances in various...
optical
Pertaining to optics and the phenomena of light.
microwave mapping
The pattern of microwave field intensity that can be obtained by detecting the minute expansion of a microwave absorber slab...
Mollier diagram
Graphic evaluation of the operation of a steam thermodynamic cycle of a solar energy system on which enthalpy is plotted...
feature extraction
In image processing and machine vision, the process in which an initial measurement pattern or some subsequence of...
microcircuit
A microcircuit typically refers to an integrated circuit (IC) or chip that contains miniaturized electronic components, such...
simultaneous location and mapping
Technology that uses data from an array of sensors, one of which is commonly lidar, to solve the problem of creating a map...
spurious resolution
A phenomenon that causes the details in an image to appear at a spatial frequency higher than that at which the contrast...
nanoimprint lithography
Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nanolithography technique used for fabricating nanoscale patterns on a substrate. It is a...
Nernst glower
A Nernst glower, also known simply as a Nernst lamp or Nernst filament, is a type of incandescent lamp or radiant heater...
runout
In a linear stage, any deviation from the desired translation across a flat, straight line.
laser active elements
Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the...
American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an international non-profit organization dedicated to...
delay time
The interval between direction of signal to a light-emitting diode and attainment of 10 percent output current in the...
ammonia maser
An ammonia maser is a device that amplifies microwave radiation using ammonia gas molecules in a process analogous to how...
CMOS camera
A CMOS camera refers to an imaging device that employs a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to...
near-infrared spectroscopy cerebral oximetry
A monitoring technique used to measure the oxygen saturation levels in the brains of patients, commonly in operating room...
superfluorescence
The process in which the normal rate of fluorescent emission from a substance is enhanced by virtue of the optical gain of...
biomedical laser systems
Biomedical laser systems refer to specialized laser devices and equipment used in medical and biological applications for...
turbidity
Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by the presence of suspended particles. These...
vacuum chamber
A vacuum chamber is a sealed enclosure from which air and other gases are removed to create a low-pressure environment,...
ferroelectric domain
The region of a ferroelectric crystal where spontaneous polarization is uniformly directed.
functional near-infrared spectroscopy
Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive neuroimaging technique that measures changes in hemoglobin...
detector-Dewar assembly
A detector-Dewar assembly typically refers to a combination of a detector and a Dewar flask used in scientific instruments,...
gas discharge display
A display device that contains an inert gas that gives off orange light when a high voltage is applied to ionize the gas.
Laplacian edge enhancement
Edge enhancement technique that accentuates all edge details in an image without discriminating as to spatial orientation.
hard elastics
High-modulus elastic fibers that exhibit the following differences from conventional elastic fibers: Increasing temperature...
curing
The use of chemicals or radiation to induce a desired change in a substance; e.g., some optical adhesives are set by...
multichannel direct-reading spectrometer
An instrument that contains a spectrograph with a grating in which an array of slits, in place of a photographic plate, is...
skew ray
Any ray through an optical system that is not a meridional ray. The plane created by a refracted skew ray does not contain...
spectroheliograph
An instrument in which an image of the sun is scanned by the entrance slit of a monochromator, the exit slit simultaneously...
Photoelastic equipment and supplies
Photoelastic equipment and supplies refer to instruments and materials used in photoelasticity, a technique used to analyze...
multiple lens camera
A camera that uses a rotating mirror to project sequential images onto lenses that are arranged in an arc. The reflected...
edge-emitting LED
An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...
InGaAs photodiode
An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...
virtual histology
Virtual histology refers to the use of digital technology and computational methods to simulate or recreate histological...
dark current density
Dark current density refers to the electric current that flows through a semiconductor device in the absence of any external...
robotic vision systems
Robotic vision systems, also known as machine vision systems when integrated with robots, are technologies that enable...
histochemical staining
Histochemical staining is a laboratory technique used in biology and medicine to visualize specific chemical components...
copper oxide photocell
An early type of nonvacuum photocell consisting of a layer of copper oxide on a metallic substrate, with a thin transparent...
texel
A contraction for "texture element." A base unit used in computer graphics that defines the surface of three-dimensional...
CCD camera
A CCD camera, or charge-coupled device camera, is a type of digital camera that utilizes a CCD image sensor to capture and...
capnometer
An instrument incorporating an infrared detector assembly, used to analyze carbon dioxide gases and in medical applications...
stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy
Stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM) is a superresolution microscopy technique that enables imaging of...
liquid mirror
A mirror composed of liquid, taking advantage of the parabolic shape of a spinning liquid and the fact that the mirror's...
polychromatic acousto-optic modulator
A crystal-based device that combines and adjusts the intensities of multiple wavelengths of laser light in order to obtain...
straight-path approximation
The determination of axially symmetric and asymmetric refractive-index distributions by use of interferometry carried out on...
jig transit
An optical instrument containing a gimballed sighting telescope, used to measure angular relationships in horizontal and...
coded aperture imaging
An imaging process in which the single opening of a simple pinhole camera is replaced with many openings called,...
air dose
A quantitative measure of the amount of radiation given off by an instrument, expressed in roentgens per unit of free air.
reflectance confocal microscopy
Reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) is a non-invasive imaging technique that allows for high-resolution, in vivo imaging...
colorimeter
A colorimeter is a device used to measure and quantify the color characteristics of an object or a light source. It provides...
abaxial spherical aberration
Abaxial spherical aberration, also called oblique spherical aberration, refers to a specific type of optical aberration that...
differential quantum efficiency
The slope of the curve when output is plotted against input for quantum efficiency in a device.
plasma noise
Introduced into the laser beam from localized fluctuations in current density within the plasma itself. These fluctuations...
rare earth dopants
Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...
tourmaline
A naturally occurring crystalline mineral that has the property of polarizing transmitted light. It is little used now that...
Abney effect
The Abney effect, named after its discoverer Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney, refers to a phenomenon in color perception...
terahertz spectrometer
A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz...
meta-optics
Meta-optics, also known as metasurface optics or flat optics, is a branch of optics that involves the design, fabrication,...
dichroism
Dichroism refers to the property of certain materials to exhibit different colors or absorbance of light depending on the...
adaptation (visual adaptation)
Visual adaptation refers to the process by which the visual system adjusts to changes in the environment or stimuli over...
optical aberration
Optical aberration refers to imperfections or deviations from ideal optical behavior in an imaging system, such as a lens or...
electron-beam gun
1. A device generally used in a cathode-ray or camera tube to emit a stream of electrons moving at uniform velocity in a...
aperture illumination
The amplitude, polarization and phase contained in the field distribution over the aperture.
well plate
A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...
equalized-response densitometer
A densitometer having a receiver that indicates when a desired radiation level has been attained.
atomic clock
An atomic clock is a highly precise timekeeping device that uses the vibrations or oscillations of atoms as a reference for...
oculometer
An electro-optical infrared tracker consisting of a beamsplitter, an illuminating source, an image dissector tube and an...
mid-infrared camera
A mid-infrared camera is a type of imaging device designed to capture images in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectral range,...
optical frequency comb
An optical frequency comb is a tool used for measuring frequencies with extremely high precision. It is essentially a...
diamond-turned optic
Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and...
autofluorescence
Autofluorescence refers to the natural emission of fluorescence exhibited by certain biological structures or molecules when...
pluggable optics
Pluggable optics, also known as pluggable transceivers or optical transceivers, are modular devices used in optical...
turret
A rotating plate containing two or more lenses to provide a rapid interchange.
discontinuously reinforced aluminum
A composite derived from aluminum alloy powder and silicon carbide, used as an optical substrate in air- and spacecraft...
moiré topography
Contour mapping technique that involves positioning a grating close to an object and observing its shadow on the object...
dispersion-shifted fiber
A dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) refers to a type of optical fiber designed to minimize the effects of chromatic dispersion,...
array processor
In image processing, a specially designed programmable computer peripheral that attaches to the host system for the purpose...
superconductor
A metal, alloy or compound that loses its electrical resistance at temperatures below a certain transition temperature...
aerial mapping
The use of photographs taken from the air to construct graphic maps and charts of ground surfaces.
face-pumped laser
A device in which slab geometry internally compensates for thermal-optic distortion; the solid host material -- glass or...
colmascope
A polariscope used to demonstrate strain inherent in a piece of glass.
scribing and engraving laser systems
Scribing and engraving laser systems are types of laser equipment used for precision cutting, marking, and engraving on...
computer graphics workstation
The physical area containing an assembly of computer graphics equipment for presenting generated images and allowing...
saturation
1. The decrease of the absorption (or gain) coefficient of a medium near some transition frequency when the power of the...
lenticular stereo photography
A type of stereoscopic photography in which a pair of lenses focuses a pair of images, relative to the positions of the two...
filar eyepiece
A measuring eyepiece with a screw-micrometer-driven crosshair used to measure the size of the image.
pulse duration
The lifetime of a laser pulse, generally defined as the time interval between the halfpower points on the leading and...
aerial photography
Photographing of terrain on the ground and objects in the air by cameras mounted in aircraft; utilized in satellites,...
neon indicator tube
A cold-cathode tube containing neon and designed to visually determine a potential difference or field.
passive optical network
A passive optical network (PON) is a telecommunications network architecture that uses optical fibers and passive optical...
optical assembly
An optical assembly refers to a collection of optical components that are carefully arranged and aligned to perform a...
piezoresistance
Piezoresistance is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where the electrical resistance of a material changes in...
chalcogenide
Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur...
Camera Link HS
Camera Link HS (high speed) is a standard developed for high-speed digital data transmission in machine vision and...
sustaining voltage
In a laser, the voltage necessary to sustain a constant operating current, somewhat less than that needed for start-up.
active region
In the context of a laser diode, the active region is a critical part of the device where the primary light generation...
Compton scattering
The phenomenon observed by A.H. Compton in 1923 -- that some scattered radiation possesses a longer wavelength and...
near-infrared spectroscopy
Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a non-invasive analytical technique that uses the near-infrared region of the...
remote inspection
Remote inspection refers to the process of inspecting, evaluating, or monitoring assets, equipment, infrastructure, or...
machine vision lens
A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated...
erbium-doped fiber amplifier
An optical fiber that can be used to amplify an optical input. Erbium rare earth ions are added to the fiber core material...
line-scan recording
A type of recording in which the recording line remains fixed and the recording medium is fed past the recording device.
microphotofabrication
The formation of microimages for microreduction. The technique is used, for example, in the production of precision reticles...
lap
A metal tool used to grind lenses with loose abrasive (see diamond cutting tool). The functional surface of the lap is...
optical distance
The physical length of the light path in a substance divided by the refractive index of that substance. See also equivalent...
blackbody source
A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all...
Mie scattering
Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...
fluorographic camera
A camera with a very high aperture lens or mirror system for photographing x-ray fluorescent screen images, mainly to save...
split Stirling cooler
A cooling system used to attain and maintain desired low temperatures in infrared systems. The Stirling type is a mechanical...
leading edge spike
In a sequence of laser pulse emissions, the intitial pulse that often helps initiate a reaction at the target surface,...
breakdown voltage
In avalanche photodiodes, the point at which an increase in the reverse bias voltage causes the current gain to approach...
CMOS image sensor
A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used...
quantum key distribution
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method of secure communication that utilizes principles from quantum mechanics to...
optical lever
A device used to detect and measure small amounts of rotation. The rotating object contains a reflecting surface from which...
diode laser
A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....
MTF optimization
Computerized lens design algorithm that permits the lens MTF characteristic to be included and controlled during the...
extensometer
1. A strainmeter capable of measuring the change in the relationship between two reference points, provided that the points...
scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
Scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (sCMOS) refers to a type of image sensor technology specifically designed...
bilinear interpolation
It is often necessary to estimate the value of what a pixel would be between neighboring pixels. This is accomplished by...
2D profile sensor
A 2D profile sensor is a type of sensor used in various industrial and technological applications to measure and capture...
vibrational transition
A vibrational transition refers to a change in the vibrational energy of a molecule. Molecules consist of atoms that are...
quasiparticle
A quasiparticle is an emergent phenomenon that occurs in many-body systems, particularly in condensed matter physics, where...
pressurization
Injecting a gas (usually nitrogen) with a very low moisture content into the body of an optical instrument to create a...
cell migration
Cell migration refers to the process by which cells move from one location to another within tissues or across biological...
mode 1 (and mode 2)
In compact disc systems, the two principal frame formats for data storage. Mode 1 devotes 2048 bytes to user data, reserving...
fiber optic window
The face of a cathode-ray tube (CRT) that has a fiber optic sheet attached to its surface. The sheet's fibers are at right...
immunofluorescence
The technique that uses light to detect and analyze the antibodies produced by a specimen stained with an organic dye.
polycrystal
A substance that transmits the infrared, but which is too delicate or fragile to be used in the form of a single crystal....
prism
A prism is a geometric optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. It is typically a solid, transparent...
linear optics
Linear optics refers to the study and manipulation of light in a linear and deterministic manner, where the response of...
Fresnel diffraction
1. Also known as near-field diffraction. The field of radiation sent through an aperture in an absorbing screen at large...
optical table
An optical table, also known as an optical bench or an optical breadboard, is a specialized platform used in optics...
dark-line spectrum
A spectrum having some lines that are darker than others or that contrast against a light, continuous-spectrum background.
synapse
A synapse is a specialized junction between two neurons (nerve cells) or between a neuron and a target cell (such as a...
dark operate mode
An operate mode in which the sensor is programmed to perform a task such as generating output when the light level falls...
MSM photodiode
A metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiode is a type of photodetector that consists of metal electrodes on a semiconductor...
free-space optics
Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the...
analog adaptive resonance theory
Analog adaptive resonance theory (AART) is a neural network model within the broader framework of adaptive resonance theory...
swept-source Raman spectroscopy
swept-source Raman spectroscopy is an advanced analytical technique that combines the principles of Raman spectroscopy with...
electroless plating
The deposition of a metallic coating, usually nickel, on a component by chemical means rather than by electroplating; the...
rainbow hologram
Essentially, a hologram of a hologram, in which the first-generation hologram is masked with a narrow slit. During image...
principal axis
A straight line connecting the curvature centers of the refracting lens surfaces. In a mechanical sense, a line joining the...
leukocyte
Leukocytes, commonly known as white blood cells, are a crucial component of the immune system in vertebrates, including...
fiber laser
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...
Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry and physics to study vibrational, rotational, and other...
reflection x-ray microscopy
A means of high resolution study through the application of soft and hard x-rays onto a sample surface in order to obtain...
Waidner-Burgess standard
A standard of luminous intensity evaluated as the luminous intensity of 1 cm2 of a blackbody at the melting point of...
exciton
An exciton is a quasiparticle that represents the bound state of an electron and a hole in a solid-state material, typically...
ducting
Propagation of electromagnetic waves through the Earth's atmosphere in a path that conforms to the curvature of the Earth...
tolerancing
The determination of the degree to which a manufactured component can deviate from its ideal specifications of material and...
octave
In optics, an octave typically refers to a range of frequencies or wavelengths that spans a factor of 2. In other words,...
Jacquinot advantage
The higher throughput obtained with an FTIR device compared with traditional spectrometers that need slits to achieve...
ocular accommodation
Ocular accommodation is the process by which the eye changes its optical power to maintain a clear image (focus) on an...
piezoelectric
Piezoelectricity is a property exhibited by certain materials in which they generate an electric charge in response to...
light-activated silicon-controlled rectifier
A PN-PN device with incident light taking the place of gate current; three of the four semiconductor regions are available...
laser powder bed fusion
Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) is a type of additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that uses a high-power...
light-activated silicon-controlled switch
Similar to LASCR, except that all four regions are available.
spectrographic slits
The slits in a spectrograph that form images of spectral lines. Slits may be bilateral or unilateral, and generally close...
vapor degreasing
A method of cleaning and drying coated optical components. The cooled parts are placed in a container above a boiling...
structural color
Structural color refers to coloration in materials that is not caused by pigments or dyes but is instead a result of the...
laser cell sorting
A moving group of fluid-suspended biological species directed through separate channels by which the population is isolated....
digital holographic microscopy
Digital holographic microscopy (DHM) is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and digital image processing...
laser head
Contains elements which produce lasing., e.g. gain medium, oscillator mirrors as well as housing.
antiblooming gate
A device that prevents electrons from a saturated pixel in a CCD imaging device from spilling into an adjacent pixel. The...
quasi-linear theory
The first nonlinear theory in plasma physics that details the time and space evolution of plasma wave instability from a...
photonic crystals
Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...
prism binoculars
A pair of telescopes with prismatically erected images, mounted side by side with the eyepieces at the interocular distance...
filter kernal
A function used in a convolution filtering operation. The image to be filtered is convolved with the filtering kernel to...
solid-state drive
A solid-state drive (SSD) is a storage device that stores data electronically using solid-state memory chips. Unlike...
photodetector
A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical...
rhomboid prism
A reflecting prism that is rhomboidal in shape. It has two parallel transmitting faces, and two parallel reflecting faces;...
laser lenses
Laser lenses, also known as optical lenses for laser applications, are specialized lenses designed to manipulate and control...
ultrasonic grating constant
The space between diffracting centers of an ultrasonic wave that is forming certain light diffraction spectra.
optical consulting services
Optical consulting services involve specialized expertise and support provided by optical engineering firms, consultants, or...
adhesion (thin-films)
Optical thin film adhesion specifically refers to the adhesion properties of thin films used in optical applications....
Lloyd's mirror
A mirror employed with a very high incidence angle to form a pair of coherent light sources by reflection, and therefore...
Lambert's cosine law
Flux per unit solid angle leaving a surface in any direction is proportional to the cosine of the angle between that...
degrees of freedom
The number of unique ways in which a part can move in an alignment system. In static alignment, there are six: one in the...
scintillation crystal
A scintillation crystal, also known simply as a scintillator, is a material that emits light when it interacts with ionizing...
photon-rich
Photon-rich typically refers to an environment or situation where there is an abundance of photons present. In the context...
law of Brewster
The law stating that when light strikes a surface at such an angle that the reflected and refracted rays are perpendicular...
smart cities
Smart cities are urban environments that use information and communication technologies (ICT) and data-driven solutions to...
sandwich holography
The simultaneous exposure of two holographic plates with emulsions facing the object. After deformation, a second pair of...
absorption lens
An absorption lens is a type of optical lens that not only focuses or diverges light but also significantly absorbs certain...
laser-induced fluorescence
Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is a spectroscopic technique that involves using a laser to excite molecules or atoms,...
Murty interferometer
A form of shearing interferometer that contains a simple wedged (plane-parallel) glass plate with a nonzero optical path...
microcomb
A microcomb, short for microresonator frequency comb, is a novel photonic device that generates a precise series of evenly...
holographic particle velocimetry
A method of measuring flow velocity by seeding the flow with neutrally buoyant particles and using a pulsed laser to...
continuous spectrum
The radiation spectrum of matter found in condensed states, liquid or solid, that is continuous and not a line spectrum. The...
Ti:sapphire laser
A Ti:sapphire laser is a type of solid-state laser that utilizes a titanium-doped sapphire crystal as the gain medium. The...
absorption peak
An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular...
iridescence
The rainbow exhibition of colors, usually caused by interference of light of different wavelengths reflected from...
shutter speed tester
A device used to measure the opening time of a shutter. The most common devices depend on the charging or discharging of an...
optical coatings
Optical coatings are thin layers of materials applied to optical components, such as lenses, mirrors, filters, and prisms,...
mosaic
One surface of a nonconducting plate that is coated with many minute particles of photoemissive material that are insulated...
microelectromechanical systems
Microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS, refer to miniature devices or systems that integrate mechanical and electrical...
radiation-shielding windows
Plates of glass containing as many heavy metal oxides as can be dissolved in the glass without causing devitrification. The...
Polarization Imaging
A subsurface imaging technique based upon the polarization of light reflected off an object. The polarization of reflected...
actinide
The actinides are a series of 15 chemical elements in the periodic table, with atomic numbers from 89 to 103. They are named...
adjacency effect
The adjacency effect refers to a phenomenon in remote sensing and image analysis where the characteristics of an object or...
distributed Bragg reflector
A device similar to distributed feedback lasers in construction and operation, but in which the period grating that produces...
output coupler
The partially reflective mirror at the end of the laser cavity that is the source of the beam. It controls the coupling...
reactive evaporation
Reactive evaporation refers to a process in thin-film deposition where a material is deposited onto a substrate through...
quantum efficiency
Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...
ophthalmic
Pertaining to the human eye.
deep learning
Deep learning is a subset of machine learning that involves the use of artificial neural networks to model and solve complex...
Raman scattering
Raman scattering, also known as the Raman effect or Raman spectroscopy, is a phenomenon in which light undergoes inelastic...
laser texturing
Laser texturing is a manufacturing process that involves using a laser beam to selectively modify the surface of a material,...
phase mask
In optics and photolithography, a phase mask refers to a device that modifies the phase of light waves passing through it....
x-ray image spectrography
Irradiation of a cylindrical crystal with an x-ray beam resulting in Bragg diffraction that produces a slightly enlarged...
mode-locked lasers
Mode-locking is a technique used in lasers to produce ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of picoseconds,...
hybrid cable
A cable assembly containing both optical fibers and copper electrical conductors in the same jacket.
integrated circuit
Multiple, interconnected circuit elements, contained on or in a common substrate, that function as a unit and not separately.
high voltage power supplies
High voltage power supplies in photonics are specialized electrical devices designed to provide a stable and adjustable high...
cascade shower
A shower of cosmic rays whereby a high-energy electron produces one or more photons that convert into electron pairs, the...
active-cavity radiometer
An active-cavity radiometer is a highly sensitive instrument used to measure radiant energy (power per unit area), often in...
thermography
Thermography is a technique that involves the use of an infrared imaging device, called a thermal camera or infrared camera,...
grain isolating diaphragm
In a microscope, the diaphragm located between the Bertrand lens and the eyepiece, which is closed during conoscopic viewing...
roughening laser
A roughening laser is a laser-based surface modification technique aimed at altering the surface texture of a material to...
dual-chirped optical parametric amplification
Dual-chirped optical parametric amplification (DC-OPA) is an advanced technique in ultrafast laser technology used to...
bathymetric lidar
Bathymetric lidar is a remote sensing technique used to measure the depth of water bodies and map underwater terrain...
subtractive color process
The basic process of color photography whereby colors are subtracted from white light by means of filters, making all colors...
heat treating
The process of subjecting glass to temperature cycling to produce physico-chemical reactions that alter its properties....
active-matrix liquid crystal display
An active matrix liquid crystal display (AMLCD) is a type of flat-panel display technology that utilizes an array of...
GEDI lidar
The global ecosystem dynamics investigation (GEDI) lidar is a state-of-the-art spaceborne instrument designed to study...
modulation transfer function
Also called sine wave response and contrast transfer function. The modulation transfer function is the ratio of the...
Huygenian eyepiece
An ocular having two planoconvex lenses that are formed from similar glass and that are separated by a space equal to half...
Cassegrain lens system
A two-mirror lens design used in astronomical telescopes, the primary being a parabola, the secondary a smaller hyperbola....
grating
A framework or latticework having an even arrangement of rods, or any other long narrow objects with interstices between...
Nyquist criterion
In image acquisition (and sampling theory), the postulate that the pickup sampling frequency must be a minimum of twice as...
complementary wavelength
Also called complementary dominant wavelength. On a chromaticity diagram, the wavelength on the spectrum locus that lies on...
fiber optic passive components
Fiber optic passive components are devices used in fiber optic communication systems that do not require an external power...
vacuum
In optics, the term vacuum typically refers to a space devoid of matter, including air and other gases. However, in...
diasporometer
In an optical rangefinder, the system of wedges that rotate in opposite directions to aid in the detection of deviation in...
Higgs boson
The Higgs boson is a fundamental particle associated with the Higgs field, a field that permeates the universe and is...
agri-photonics
Agri-photonics refers to the application of photonics technologies in agriculture. Photonics involves the generation,...
water glass
A solution containing colloidal silica particles.
metallographic microscope
A specially designed microscope for observing the etched surface of a polished metal specimen. The specimen is often laid...
gain
Also known as amplification. 1. The increase in a signal that is transmitted from one point to another through an amplifier....
wave function
In quantum mechanics, a wave function (often denoted by the Greek letter Ψ, psi) is a mathematical description that...
liquid core optical fiber
Multimode straight fiber capable of transporting linearly polarized light with any incident polarization angle, and in which...
videography
Videography refers to the process of capturing moving images and recording them in a digital format. It involves the use of...
aiming beam
A visible laser beam generated coaxially with an infrared or other invisible laser beam to aid in its positioning.
analog-to-analog
Analog-to-analog (AA) refers to the process or system that involves the conversion or transmission of analog signals from...
waveguide
A waveguide is a physical structure or device that is designed to confine and guide electromagnetic waves, such as radio...
pulsed-dye laser
A laser with a gain medium consisting of an organic dye, which is carbon-based. The dye is mixed with a solvent, allowing...
colored glass filters
Colored glass filters are optical components made from glass that has been uniformly tinted with specific colorants or dyes....
x-ray absorbing filter
A window made of glass containing a high percentage of lead or other dense material known to absorb x-rays readily.
Rydberg atom
The term "Rydberg atom" refers to an atom in a highly excited state where one or more of its electrons are in a Rydberg...
microreciprocal degree
An approximated measure of the smallest change in color temperature detectable by the human eye, defined as the reciprocal...
chirped-pulse amplification laser
A laser whose pulses are expanded, using gratings and optical fibers, before amplification and compressed to increase beam...
optically compensating zoom system
A variable focal length lens system that retains the object in focus as one or more lenses move as a unit along its optical...
interferometric modulator display
Interferometric modulator display (IMOD) is a type of display technology used in electronic devices, known for its energy...
CMOS quantitative polymerase chain reaction system
This type of miniaturized system, referred to as CMOS qPCR, combines microfluidic technology with an ultralow-light CMOS...
antigen
An antigen is any substance that is capable of triggering an immune response in an organism. Antigens are typically proteins...
liquid/fluid optics
Liquid or fluid optics refers to the use of liquids to create or enhance optical systems. These systems leverage the unique...
luminescent greenhouse collector
A collector for photovoltaic power generation that consists of a thin plate that strongly absorbs sunlight striking its...
equivalent air path
When a block of glass (prism, window, filter, etc.) is placed into a converging light bundle, it increases the physical...
magnon
A magnon is a quasiparticle representing a quantized spin wave in a magnetic material. In other words, it is a collective...
Nomarski microscopy
Also referred to as differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy; Nomarski microscopy is a unique form of microscopy...
angular spectrum approach
The angular spectrum approach is a mathematical and computational technique used in the field of optics to analyze and...
idiochromatic
Pertaining to the possession of photoelectric characteristics as a result of the properties of the true crystal and not of...
Lorentz oscillator model
The Lorentz oscillator model is a theoretical model used in physics to describe the response of a charged particle (such as...
Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor
The Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor is an optical device used for measuring the wavefront aberrations of an optical system....
Ritchey-Common test
An interferometric method for describing the surface shape of large coated or uncoated optical flats. The procedure uses a...
oriented crystal
A crystal having the axes of its grains aligned so that they have directional magnetic characteristics.
high-sensitivity camera
A high-sensitivity camera is a type of camera designed to perform well in low light conditions, capturing clear and detailed...
holmium laser
Holmium lasers are a type of medical laser that utilizes holmium-doped crystals as the gain medium. The term holmium laser...
photoelasticity
The process of determining, with the aid of plane-polarized light, the stress distribution in materials under complex...
gold colloid aggregates
Gold colloid aggregates refer to clusters or assemblies of gold nanoparticles suspended in a liquid medium. These aggregates...
quantitative phase imaging
Quantitative phase imaging (QPI) is an advanced imaging technique used in microscopy to measure and analyze the optical...
resonance spectrum
The fluorescent emission spectrum emitted by certain substances following the irradiation of one of these substances with...
time-lapse optical coherence tomography
Time-lapse optical coherence tomography (OCT) refers to a medical imaging technique that captures a series of sequential OCT...
pathogen
A pathogen is a biological agent, such as a virus, bacterium, fungus, protozoan, or parasite, that causes disease in its...
linear receive optics
Linear receive optics typically refers to the optical components and systems used in the reception (detection) of linearly...
circumzenithal arc
The halo phenomenon of a brightly colored arc having the colors of the rainbow and lying parallel to the horizon.
YAG crystal
A YAG crystal refers to a solid-state crystal made of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), which is a synthetic crystalline...
adaptive optics
Adaptive optics (AO) is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effects of...
hydrogen cyanide laser
A gas laser having a mixture of gases that makes it useful in the lab. The mixture of gases flows through a pressure and...
linewidth
Linewidth, also known as spectral linewidth or line width, refers to a measure of the width of a frequency spectrum of a...
plasmonics
Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free...
hero experiments
Laboratory experiments that focus on demonstrating new capabilities of a certain technology or device, usually without...
crystal oven
A temperature-controlled container used to stabilize the temperature and resonant frequency of a crystal found in a...
beamsplitter coatings
Beamsplitter coatings are specialized optical coatings applied to glass or other substrates to split incident light into two...
laser tube
The device, usually made of glass or a similar material, that contains the resonant cavity and optics of a gas laser.
servo
A servo, short for servomechanism or servo motor, is a closed-loop control system that precisely controls the position,...
acoustical holography
Acoustical holography is a technique used to visualize and analyze sound fields in three-dimensional space. It involves...
acuity (visual acuity)
Visual acuity specifically refers to the clarity or sharpness of vision, typically measured by the ability to discern the...
Laser scanning
Laser scanning is a technology used to create precise digital representations of physical objects or environments by...
sheet polarizer
A sheet of plastic material containing microscopic crystals of herapathite or some other similar substance that transmits...
temperature sensors
Temperature sensors in optics are crucial for monitoring and controlling thermal effects that can significantly impact...
biomarker
A biomarker, short for biological marker, refers to a measurable and quantifiable indicator of a biological condition,...
laser irradiation
Laser irradiation is a process that involves the use of focused laser beams to deliver energy to specific areas for medical,...
microradian
Equivalent to 10-6 radian, where 1 radian equals 180/pi degrees. A rod 1 km in length will be moved by an angle of 1...
spin coating
Spin coating is a widely used technique in the fabrication of thin films and coatings, particularly in microelectronics,...
contact microradiography
The radiography of small objects having detail too fine to be seen by the unaided eye. The resulting negative, when...
indium gallium arsenide camera
An InGaAs (indium gallium arsenide) camera is a type of imaging device that utilizes InGaAs sensors to capture images in the...
swept-source laser
A swept-source laser, also known as a wavelength-swept laser, is a type of laser that rapidly and continuously changes its...
slicing and cutting machines - for crystals, quartz, glass, etc.
A crystal, glass, or quartz slicing and cutting machine is a specialized piece of equipment used in the manufacturing...
air-to-ground phototransmission system
A category of systems designed to communicate a photo taken from the air (e.g., aircraft, balloon, satellite) to a ground...
infrared coatings
Infrared coatings, also known as IR coatings, are specialized optical coatings designed to manipulate the transmission,...
ultraviolet reflectance
Ultraviolet reflectance refers to the ability of a material or surface to reflect UV light. Ultraviolet light is...
laser drift
Laser drift typically refers to a phenomenon where the frequency or wavelength of a laser source gradually changes over...
semiconductor materials
Semiconductor materials in photonics refer to materials that have electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an...
solid optics
Optical elements arranged with no spaces between, so that the light travels only through glass, not air.
end-fire coupling
End-fire coupling refers to a method of coupling energy into or out of a waveguide, transmission line, or antenna, where the...
piezo worm
A piezoelectric translator that moves up and down a spindle like a caterpillar. It clamps itself at one end, expands, clamps...
luminance meter
A type of photometer calibrated in luminance units (candles per square unit, or lamberts). In photography an exposure meter...
lineament
A mappable surface feature arranged in straight or curved lines that is distinguished from surrounding surfaces and is...
after-image
That image remaining on the detector after the primary stimulus has been removed. In the visual system, the after-image...
optoelectronic
Pertaining to a device that responds to optical power, emits or modifies optical radiation, or utilizes optical radiation...
microfluidics
Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically...
superresolution
Superresolution refers to the enhancement or improvement of the spatial resolution beyond the conventional limits imposed by...
spaser
A spaser (surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a nanoscale device that generates coherent...
microdisplay
A microdisplay is a miniature electronic display technology that is designed to project visual information onto a small...
ultraviolet microscopy
The study and photographing of microscope specimens in ultraviolet light; using an optical microscope containing fluorite...
image processing equipment
Image processing equipment refers to hardware and software systems designed for capturing, manipulating, analyzing, and...
helical scanning
A method used in facsimile scanning that sweeps the elemental area across the copy in a spiral motion as the result of the...
neuromorphic
Neuromorphic refers to the design and development of computing systems or devices that are inspired by the structure and...
quality control and inspection systems
Quality control and inspection systems in optics and photonics ensure that optical components and systems meet stringent...
mirage
The distortion of an object's true image as the result of abnormal atmospheric disturbances along the path traveled by the...
population inversion
The condition in which there are more atomic systems in the upper of two energy levels than in the lower, so stimulated...
pentamirror
A pentamirror is an optical component found in SLR cameras, composed of multiple flat mirrors arranged in a pentagonal...
visible spectrometer
A visible spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the intensity of light in the visible spectrum, typically...
laser oscillator
Contains the light or beam path within a laser device. The oscillator uses reflective optical components that are oriented...
cesium-antimonide photocathode
A photocathode that exhibits maximum sensitivity in the blue and ultraviolet regions of the spectrum. The sensitivity is...
photometric
Pertaining to the measurement of the intensity of light.
turnkey system
A system that is complete and self-contained, needing no further additions to permit its operation.
rectilinear system
An optical system that is corrected for distortion and spherical aberration and therefore forms the image of a straight line...
PIN photodiode
A PIN photodiode is a type of photodetector or semiconductor device used to convert light signals into electrical signals....
optical head
In compact disc and CD-ROM technology, the portion of the drive that projects the laser light onto the surface of the media...
laser painting
Extended period exposure photographs of a laser light created with various patterns within full image (laser graffiti).
filovirus
Filoviruses are a family of viruses that are responsible for severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers in humans and...
data cube
A multidimensional array of values that is commonly used in programming to describe a time series of image data. Each...
pixel binning
Pixel binning, also known as pixel merging or pixel combining, is a technique used in digital imaging and camera technology....
dark-field disc
A disc contained within an electronic cell counter for regulating light transmission.
spectrum measuring instrument
A traveling microscope or an automatic microdensitometer used to measure the spectrum plate obtained in a spectrograph.
hybrid mosaic on stacked silicon
A sensor module used in advanced pattern recognition systems, containing signal-processing integrated circuits stacked and...
contact fluorography
A fluorographic method whereby the sensitive photographic medium is pressed against a fluorescent screen to form a visible...
free radicals
Short-lived molecular or atomic particles, with an unpaired electron, that play an important part in many photochemical...
oxytosis
Oxytosis refers to a form of cell death that is induced by oxidative stress. It is characterized by the overproduction of...
carbonization
Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the...
rare-earth type glass
Optical glasses containing the oxides of rare earths such as lanthanum to impart a very high refractive index combined with...
anisotropic
Anisotropic is a term used to describe a material or substance that exhibits different properties or behaviors in different...
Kerr soliton
A Kerr soliton refers to a specific type of soliton, a self-reinforcing wave packet, that arises in nonlinear optical...
aerial reconnaissance
The use of optical or electronic recording systems to extract information from the terrain, while aloft, for reconnaissance...
fluoride glass
Optical glass containing zirconium fluoride that results in special characteristics such as improved transmission.
borosilicate glass
A strong, heat-resistant glass that contains a minimum of 5 percent boric oxide.
achromat
An achromat, in the context of optics, refers to a type of lens or lens system designed to reduce chromatic aberration....
electron-beam recording
The recording of the information contained in a modulated electron beam onto photographic or silicon resin-coated materials....
laser mirrors
Laser mirrors are specialized optical components designed to reflect laser beams with high efficiency and minimal loss. They...
frequency comb
A frequency comb is a precise and regular series of equally spaced spectral lines, or frequencies, that are generated with...
decision-tree classification
A structural method of optical character recognition, used where the input media are variable, as in hand-written or...
neuromorphic vision sensor
A neuromorphic vision sensor is a type of imaging device designed to mimic the structure and functioning of the human visual...
laser rangefinder
A laser rangefinder is a device that uses laser technology to measure the distance between the device and a target. It...
resonator
A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance, which is a phenomenon that occurs when an external force or...
optogenetic defibrillation
An optogenetic technique that embeds genetically-engineered proteins to the heart to aid in terminating arrhythmias. After...
Dewar vessel
An evacuated, double-walled container for storing liquids at low temperatures. Often made of glass, the vessel resembles a...
polycarbonate
A tough, durable, heat- and cold-resistant optical quality plastic used in injection-molded items such as streetlight...
sonde
A ruggedized scintillation counter used in oil well logging. The cylindrical housing contains a gamma ray source, a...
morphological processing
A set of algorithms used to study the structural and spatial characteristics of objects in a digitized image for...
autocollimator
An autocollimator is an optical instrument used for measuring small angular deviations with high precision. It operates on...
chip-on-board lights
Chip-on-board (COB) lights refer to a type of LED lighting technology where multiple LED chips are directly mounted onto a...
pentaprsim
A pentaprism is a five-sided glass prism used in optical devices, particularly in SLR cameras, to deviate the path of light...
ray tracing
Ray tracing is a rendering technique used in computer graphics to simulate the way light interacts with objects in a scene....
accessible radiation
Accessible radiation refers to the portion of radiation from a source that can be reached or detected by humans,...
monoergic
Pertaining to radiation or particle emission, whereby the emission is produced with minimal energy spread.
time-correlated single photon counting
Time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) is a technique used in photon counting applications, particularly in the...
pulse compression
A means of achieving higher peak powers and more efficient harmonic generation by narrowing the pulse width and thus...
aperture stop
A physical constraint, often a lens retainer, that limits the diameter of the axial light bundle allowed to pass through a...
electrodeless discharge tube
A device consisting of an airtight quartz tube that holds the material to be analyzed. When a high-frequency electrostatic...
scientific CMOS camera
A scientific CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) camera is a type of digital camera specifically designed for...
microchannel plate
A microchannel plate (MCP) is a specialized electron multiplier device used in various applications such as particle...
Brace-Lemon spectrophotometer
A spectrophotometer having a pair of identical collimators with two Glan polarizing prisms, one fixed in azimuth and the...
probe card
A probe card is a testing device used in the semiconductor manufacturing industry to evaluate and test the electrical...
addressability (optical)
Optical addressability refers to the capability to control or manipulate individual elements that emit or modulate light...
drum scanner
An image-processing device that scans in a straight line parallel to the axis of a rotating cylinder to which the material...
Casimir force
The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged...
luminous paint
A mixture of phosphor with a trace of a radioactive element that emits faint light continually. It is used on watch dials...
dielectric
Exhibiting the characteristic of materials that are electrical insulators or in which an electric field can be sustained...
pseudohologram
Coded image obtained optically with a nonredundant pinhole array imaging aperture.
reticle
A reticle, also known as a reticule or graticule, is a pattern or set of markings placed in the focal plane of an optical...
annular eclipse
A type of solar eclipse that occurs when the sun is at perihelion and the moon is at apogee. Because the apparent size of...
phluometry
The term applied to the geometrical structure of radiometry or of the propagation of any quantity that is conversed and that...
laser kiss cutting
Laser kiss cutting is a technique used in manufacturing and fabrication processes, particularly in industries like...
pyroelectric pulse detector
A current-source thermal detector used to detect and study the pulses obtained from particular lasers.
disc laser
A laser having a rod that is a stacked array of discs immersed in a transparent flowing coolant fluid. In this way, the...
solar radiation
Radiation from the sun that is made up of a very wide range of wavelengths, from the long infrared to the short ultraviolet...
reflected ultraviolet photography
A photographic method used to obtain an image of a subject by means of its reflectance of incident ultraviolet radiation. An...
micro-LED
Micro-LED (micro-light-emitting diode) refers to a technology that involves the use of very small light-emitting diodes to...
embedded vision
Embedded vision refers to the integration of computer vision technologies into various embedded systems, devices, or...
Newton's rings
The series of rings or bands formed when light beams reflected from two polished, adjacent surfaces, placed together with a...
STED microscopy
STED microscopy, or stimulated emission depletion microscopy, is a superresolution imaging technique in fluorescence...
machine vision software
Machine vision software is a type of software used in industrial and manufacturing settings to analyze and interpret images...
Langmuir-Blodgett technique
A method of depositing crystalline films one molecular layer at a time, by dipping the substrate into water containing a...
junction diode
A semiconductor device with the property of conducting current more easily in one direction than the other. It has two...
germanium crystal
Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...
surface-mount LEDs
Surface-mount LEDs (SMD LEDs) are light-emitting diodes designed for mounting directly onto the surface of printed circuit...
fixed axis of rotation
The locus of points in a system along a line that remains stationary while the remainder of the system rotates.
optical staining
With respect to microscopy, also called dispersive staining, optical staining the projection of colors through areas of a...
fiber optic attentuators
A fiber optic attenuator is a passive optical component designed to attenuate or decrease the intensity of an optical signal...
probe
Acronym for profile resolution obtained by excitation. In its simplest form, probe involves the overlap of two...
laser-induced cut and patch
A process used in the design, repair and customization of integrated circuits. A low-power laser etches a silicon wafer...
Weissenberg method
The Weissenberg method, named after the German physicist Karl Weissenberg, is a technique used in x-ray crystallography for...
low Earth orbit
Low Earth orbit (LEO) refers to a region in space that is relatively close to Earth's surface, typically characterized by...
spectral signature
A spectral signature, in the context of remote sensing and spectroscopy, refers to the unique pattern or characteristic...
near-infrared spectrometer
A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection...
oleophobic
Oleophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or resist oils. The word oleophobic comes from the...
Ritchey-Chretien telescope
A form of Cassegrain telescope having a concave hyperbolic primary and a convex hyperbolic secondary. This form permits the...
remote active spectrometer
A device employed to identify toxic agents lingering on the ground or in the air from up to three miles away, by using laser...
strain
In optics, the mechanical tension, compression or shear in optical glass due to internal stress caused by improper cooling...
residual gas analysis
A measurement in optical thin-film coating processes whereby the gases remaining in the vacuum chamber after coating are...
fluorescein
Fluorescein is a synthetic organic compound extensively used as a fluorescent tracer in various applications, particularly...
emission spectrum
An emission spectrum is a graphical representation or a characteristic pattern of the wavelengths or frequencies of light...
carbon dioxide laser
A gas laser in which the energy-state transitions between vibrational and rotational states of CO2 molecules give emission...
coherence length
That length over which energy in two separate waves remains constant. With respect to a laser, the greatest distance between...
polling
Inquiry made to gain access by a master station in a token ring network.
translucent
Pertaining to materials having the property of reflecting a part and transmitting a part of the incident radiation.
attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy
Attosecond-pump attosecond-probe spectroscopy (APAP) is an advanced technique in ultrafast spectroscopy that allows...
radiant
Pertaining to electromagnetic radiation, with the contributions at all wavelengths of interest weighted equally.
endoscope
An endoscope is a medical device used for visualizing and examining the interior of hollow organs, body cavities, or...
micromachining laser systems
Micromachining laser systems are advanced tools that use laser technology to perform highly precise material removal and...
parallel scanning
Parallel scanning refers to a method of acquiring data or images simultaneously from multiple sources or in parallel, rather...
chemical-mechanical polishing
A technique for polishing silicon in which an alkaline suspension containing silicon dioxide particles creates a soft layer...
pushbroom scanning
Pushbroom scanning is a technique used in remote sensing and imaging systems, particularly in satellite and aerial sensors,...
visually coupled airborne systems simulator
A visual system including a tiny television tube and imaging optics, all contained in a helmet to be worn by pilots in...
invisibility cloak
An invisibility cloak is technology that would render an object or individual invisible to the observer. In scientific...
holocamera
A camera system used to form a high-precision hologram of the subject on a photographic plate. It contains a high-power...
chirped-pulse amplification
Chirped pulse amplification (CPA) is a technique used in laser physics to amplify ultrashort laser pulses to high energies...
gray
1. A measure of absorbed dose, equal to the energy imparted by ionizing radiation to a mass of matter corresponding to 1 J...
starting voltage
In a laser, the voltage necessary to initiate electrical discharge, somewhat higher than that needed to sustain it.
custom optic
A custom optic refers to an optical component that is designed, manufactured, and tailored to meet specific requirements or...
meridional ray
A ray that lies in the meridional plane; a ray that lies in the plane that contains the optical axis. A tangential ray.
modulator
A modulator is a device or component that modifies a carrier signal in order to encode information for transmission over a...
pitch polishing compound
Pitch for polishing mixed with other materials to give it the right viscosity so that it will follow the fine-ground lens...
Pechan prism
A prism made up of two air-spaced components. It has the ability to revert, and not invert, an image, and can be used in...
McLeod gauge
A gauge designed to measure high degrees of vacuum. It consists of a glass bulb attached to the vacuum vessel, the...
fiber distributed data interface
A standard for fiber optic data transmission systems being developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and...
quantum-ehanced metrology
Quantum-enhanced metrology refers to the use of quantum mechanics principles and techniques to enhance the precision and...
coherent fiber bundle
A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers...
electrophoretic display
An electrophoretic display, often referred to as an electronic paper display or e-paper display, is a type of electronic...
data analysis software
Data analysis software is a category of software tools used for the systematic examination of data sets to uncover patterns,...
macula lutea
The small central portion of the human retina that is responsible for providing the clearest, and most distinct aspects of...
lithography
Lithography is a key process used in microfabrication and semiconductor manufacturing to create intricate patterns on the...
retroreflectivity
Retroreflectivity refers to the property of a surface or material to reflect light back to its source, regardless of the...
microscopy
Microscopy is a scientific technique that involves the use of microscopes to observe and study objects that are too small to...
selective laser melting
Selective laser melting (SLM) is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that belongs to the powder bed...
quantum entanglement
Quantum entanglement is a phenomenon in quantum mechanics where two or more particles become correlated to such an extent...
Nd:YAG laser
Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain...
integration time
Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a...
ferroelectric materials
Ferroelectric materials are a type of dielectric materials that exhibit spontaneous electric polarization, meaning they...
backside-illuminated sensor
A backside-illuminated (BSI) sensor is an image sensor technology where the light-sensitive elements (typically pixels) are...
sapphire optical fiber
Sapphire optical fiber is a type of optical fiber made from single-crystal sapphire, which is a form of aluminum oxide...
epitaxial
Epitaxial refers to the growth of a crystalline layer on a crystalline substrate in such a way that the orientation of the...
spectral repeatability
Spectral repeatability refers to the consistency and reproducibility of spectral measurements across multiple trials or...
short wavelength infrared
Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...
coupling efficiency
The fraction of available output from a radiant source that is coupled and transmitted by an optical fiber.
backscatter
Backscatter refers to the phenomenon in which radiation or waves are scattered backward, opposite to the direction of the...
light source power
The electrical power used to stimulate any light source. Power supplies may be step-up or step-down transformers; rectifiers...
meso form
A form of an element that cannot demonstrate optical activity as a result of dextrogyrate and levogyrate effects that are...
metaverse
The term "metaverse" refers to a collective virtual shared space, created by the convergence of virtually enhanced physical...
strain viewer
A viewer that uses the transmittance of polarized light through glass or a similar medium to examine strained regions. See...
ionography
An electroradiographic process that uses ionization of air by x-rays as a basis for forming electrostatic images.
macroscopic
Sizable enough to be perceived by the unaided eye.
gegenschein-zodiacal light photometer
A photometer used to measure sky brightness and polarization associated with zodiacal light, background starlight, F-region...
acceptance pattern
The acceptance pattern, often used in the context of antennas and optical systems, refers to the spatial distribution of the...
in situ
In situ, from Latin meaning "in place," refers to a method or approach where measurements, observations, or experiments are...
index dip
The decrease in the refractive index at the center of a fiber's core, caused by certain fabrication techniques. Also called...
enantiomer
Enantiomers are a pair of molecules that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other, similar to left and right...
photodiode detector
A photodiode detector is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It operates based on the...
beamsplitter
A beamsplitter is an optical device used to divide a beam of light into two or more separate beams, typically by reflecting...
reduced focal length
The ratio of the first focal length of a lens to the refractive index of the medium containing the incident light; the ratio...
cross dispersion
Recombination of only the light that is correctly dispersed by the first stage of a polychromator through its wide...
index-guided laser
A laser diode with an output beam contained in the active layer by means of a built-in refractive index profile formed in...
germicidal UV
Germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) refers to a specific range of UV radiation that has disinfectant properties capable of killing...
active-matrix
An OLED display that has an integrated electronic backplane as its substrate. Active-matrix OLED displays use at least two...
continuous wave
Continuous wave (CW) refers to a type of signal or transmission where the signal is constant and does not vary with time. In...
single-mode fiber optic connectors
Single-mode fiber optic connectors are designed for use with single-mode fiber cables, which have a smaller core diameter...
Bragg method of crystal analysis
A technique in which a beam of x-rays is directed against a crystal, the atoms of which, because of their lattice...
lock-in amplifier
A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or...
neurodegenerative
Neurodegenerative refers to a process or condition characterized by progressive dysfunction or loss of structure and...
negative stereoscopic image
When a stereo pair of images is switched so that the right eye sees the left image and the left eye the right, the stereo...
dichalcogenide
Dichalcogenides are a class of compounds composed of two atoms of a chalcogen element bonded to a single atom of a metal or...
atmospheric optics
The analysis of the properties of radiation, such as light, when acted upon by variations in the atmosphere. Blue and red...
multiline laser system
A multiline laser system refers to a type of laser that is capable of emitting multiple discrete wavelengths or spectral...
absorption spectrum
An absorption spectrum is a graphical representation of the absorption of light by a material as a function of wavelength,...
spectrohelioscope
An instrument similar to the spectroheliograph, but having a scanning method that is performed by a pair of rapidly...
spectral domain optical coherence tomography
Spectral domain optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...
chirped mirrors
Chirped mirrors are optical devices designed to manipulate the spectral properties of ultrashort laser pulses. They consist...
photoimmunotherapy
Photoimmunotherapy (PIT) is a medical treatment approach that combines elements of phototherapy and immunotherapy to target...
single molecule localization microscopy
Single molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) is a group of super-resolution microscopy techniques that surpass the...
telemeter
1. The term used to describe any of the many instruments used to remotely record physical dimensions, such as strain,...
spectral
Pertaining to or as a function of wavelength. Spectral quantities are evaluated at a single wavelength.
perovskite
The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a...
incident ray
A ray of light that falls upon or strikes a surface of an object such as a lens. It is said to be incident to the surface.
optical waveguide
Any structure having the ability to guide the flow of radiant energy along a path parallel to its axis and to contain the...
quasi-monochromatic light
Single wavelength source with a larger linewidth often containing multiple longitudinal modes.
femtosecond laser
A femtosecond laser is a type of laser that emits ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of femtoseconds,...
mode sweeping
A form of laser output noise that is caused by thermal, mechanical, or acoustical disturbances of the cavity length. Mode...
laser trimming
The use of lasers in tailoring of such components as thin-film resistors. The process improves speed and accuracy.
mid-wave infrared
MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...
absorption hologram
An absorption hologram is a type of hologram in which the image is formed by variations in the absorption of light within...
iodine cycle
A development aimed at extending the life of a tungsten filament. The iodine vapor in the lamp envelope combines with the...
phototransistor
A phototransistor is a type of semiconductor device that converts light energy into electrical signals. Similar to a regular...
reflection reduction coating
The thin, transparent film made up of specific substances applied to glass-air surfaces for the purpose of decreasing the...
wafer
In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...
optical cements and adhesive
Optical cements and adhesives are specialized materials used in the assembly and bonding of optical components in optical...
microscope objective
The lens located at the object end of a microscope tube. A wide range of objectives is available, including simple...
acceptor
In various scientific fields, the term acceptor has distinct meanings: Chemistry: An acceptor is an atom, ion, or...
aptamer
An aptamer is a short, single-stranded DNA or RNA molecule that can bind to a specific target molecule with high affinity...
hydrophobic
Hydrophobic is a term used to describe substances or materials that repel or do not readily interact with water. The word...
smectic phase
A form of liquid crystal in which flow does not take place in the usual manner. When examined with polarized light, the...
silicon carbide light-emitting diodes
Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...
halftone screen
A plate containing a uniform pattern of transparent holes in an opaque background, the clear area being nearly equal to the...
chemical vapor deposition
Chemical vapor deposition is a process of applying dopants to a glass bait by flame reactions of gaseous compounds. See also...
acutance
Acutance refers to the perceived sharpness of an image in terms of the contrast of edges, rather than the resolution of fine...
diaphragm
A flanged or plain ring with a restricted aperture, located in an optical system at any of several points, that cuts off...
lithium triborate nonlinear crystal
Lithium triborate, commonly abbreviated as LBO, is a nonlinear optical crystal widely used in various applications involving...
dual-axis laser
Dual-axis laser is a laser device or system capable of emitting laser beams along two orthogonal axes (typically X and Y...
Förster resonance energy transfer
Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) is a mechanism describing the transfer of energy between two closely spaced...
fiber optic preform
A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...
permanent magnetic focusing
The focusing of an electron beam by a magnetic field that permanently retains the majority of its magnetic properties.
tungsten diselenide
Tungsten diselenide (WSe2) is a member of the transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) family, composed of tungsten (W) and...
attenuator
An attenuator is an electronic or optical device used to reduce the power or intensity of a signal without significantly...
gram negative
Gram-negative bacteria are a group of bacteria that possess a cell envelope composed of a thin layer of peptidoglycan...
attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy
Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples....
field tilt
The angle measured between the focal surface containing the image and a plane normal to the optical axis.
wide-angle lens
A wide-angle lens is a type of camera lens that has a shorter focal length than a standard or normal lens, allowing it to...
xylene
Fluid used to aid in examination of semifinished blanks.
motorized positioning equipment
Motorized positioning equipment in optics and photonics refers to devices and systems that use motors to precisely control...
Greenough microscope
A form of a stereoscopic microscope having paired objectives, prisms and eyepieces, and invented by H. Greenough.
image signal processor
An image signal processor (ISP) is a hardware component or subsystem in digital imaging devices responsible for capturing,...
wave train
The continuous group of waves that persists for a short time only.
photoelectromotive force
The force that stimulates the emission of an electrical current when photovoltaic action creates a potential difference...
Q-switched pulse
A laser output that occurs when the cavity resonator Q is first kept very low, using rotating mirrors or saturable...
x-ray diffraction
The bending of x-rays by the regular layers of molecules in a crystal acting like a very small diffraction grating. The...
stress-applying part
In polarization-preserving optical fibers, the element used to induce birefringence. The SAP is highly doped to provide a...
qubit
A qubit, short for quantum bit, is the fundamental unit of information in quantum computing and quantum information...
micromanipulator
A device that provides means for accurately moving minuscule tools over the surface of a microscopic object. The motion...
Fabry-Perot cavity
An optical resonator in which feedback is accomplished by two parallel planes. In diode lasers, the planes are obtained by...
Porro prism erecting system
The arrangement of two Porro prisms so that the inverted image formed by certain types of optical instruments is the same as...
hematoporphyrin derivative
A material used in photodynamic therapy that is retained selectively by tumor tissue when injected into the body; it then...
laser
A laser, which stands for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," is a device that produces coherent and...
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of optical lens that consists of a series of concentric grooves or steps carved into a flat, thin...
photonic engine
A photonic engine refers to a device or system that utilizes photonics, or the science and technology of generating,...
holographic tomography
Holographic tomography is an advanced imaging technique that combines holography and tomography to provide three-dimensional...
haze
An aggravated form of fog in a polished surface caused by the scattering of light. The defects causing haze are larger than...
Geometrical optics
The area of optics in which the propagation of light is described by geometrical lines (or rays) governed by Fermat's...
Wynne-Rosin telescope
A Cassegrain telescope having a parabolic primary mirror, a spherical secondary mirror and a zero-power doublet in the...
molded blank
A blank whose basic surface curves are attained by heating and forming a given weight of raw glass; a rough glass blank...
diffuse reflectance spectroscopy
Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties...
focal collimator
A collimator having, at one end of a tube, an objective lens, and at the other, a reticle with a pair of spaced lines...
Laurent polarimeter
A Laurent polarimeter is an instrument used in optics for measuring the rotation of plane-polarized light caused by...
fluorescent light source
A tube containing mercury vapor and lined with a phosphor. When current is passed through the vapor the strong ultraviolet...
interlayer attraction
Interlayer attraction refers to the attractive forces between adjacent layers of atoms or molecules in a material,...
nonpolarizing prisms
Nonpolarizing prisms are optical components designed to split or combine light beams without altering their polarization...
box camera
The simplest, most inexpensive type of camera, which is shaped as an oblong or square box, containing the simplest lens,...
cone
1. A solid figure whose base is a circle and whose sides taper upward evenly to a point or apex. Light rays diverging from...
chromatic aberration
Chromatic aberration is an optical phenomenon that occurs when different wavelengths (colors) of light are refracted by a...
metal component
An accurate metal prism or plane parallel plate that is cemented to an optical element and remains with it during a series...
point spread function
The point spread function (PSF) is a fundamental concept in imaging that describes the response of an imaging system to a...
particle acceleration
Particle acceleration refers to the process by which charged particles, such as electrons or protons, gain kinetic energy...
inverse bremsstrahlung
Collisional absorption of energy that occurs in inertial confinement fusion systems when hydrodynamic expansion of the...
image retaining panel
A type of electroluminescent display that will record and maintain an irradiated image on its phosphor screen, provided a DC...
binoculars
Binoculars are optical instruments used for magnifying distant objects by using two parallel telescopes mounted side by...
optical manufacturing tools and machinery
Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...
microfluoroscope
A fluoroscope equipped with a magnified, fine-grained fluorescent screen to determine the fluorescence emitted by a...
data acquisition systems
A data acquisition (DAQ) system is a combination of hardware and software used to collect, process, and analyze data from...
3D printing
3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects...
photon tunneling microscope
An instrument in which visible light beyond the critical angle from a metallurgical microscope is focused on a reference...
crystal
A solid with a structure that exhibits a basically symmetrical and geometrical arrangement. A crystal may already possess...
powder radiography
A technique used in radiography to determine a crystal's structure by obtaining radiographs of it in powder form, normally...
optical design and engineering services
Optical design and engineering services involve the development, customization, and optimization of optical systems and...
ytterbium laser
A ytterbium laser is a type of solid-state laser that employs ytterbium ions (Yb³+) as the dopant in the gain medium....
negative ghost
A ghost image that has the reverse lightness relations of the original image. This phenomenon is a common optical illusion...
acrylic
Acrylic refers to a type of synthetic polymer material known for its versatility, clarity, and durability. It is commonly...
laser-triggered switching
A process by which the ionizing capabilities of a laser beam are used to break initiate conduction between pairs of...
acoustical hologram
An acoustical hologram refers to a three-dimensional representation of sound waves in space, analogous to optical holography...
microradiography
Radiographic recording and enhancement of the micoscopic details within the structure of thin specimens at a high...
freeform mirrors
Freeform mirrors refer to reflective optical components that deviate from traditional symmetric or rotationally symmetric...
lensless microscopy
Lensless microscopy, also known as computational or holographic microscopy, is an imaging technique that captures and...
modified chemical vapor deposition
Modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) is a technique used in the fabrication of optical fibers. It is a specialized form...
Schottky diode
A Schottky diode is a type of semiconductor diode characterized by its low forward voltage drop and fast switching speed. It...
microRNA
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small, single-stranded RNA molecules, typically consisting of about 19 to 24 nucleotides,...
Babinet compensator
A device containing two opposed quartz wedges of equal angle, one wedge being movable along its length by a micrometer...
automatic current control
Automatic current control (ACC) refers to a system or mechanism designed to regulate and maintain a desired level of...
additive color process
The additive color process refers to the method of creating color by combining different wavelengths of light. This...
meridional plane
That plane in an optical system containing its optical axis and the chief ray. Also called the tangential plane.
protein crystallography
Protein crystallography is a scientific technique used to determine the three-dimensional structure of proteins at atomic...
beam profiling
Beam profiling is a technique used to characterize and analyze the spatial intensity distribution of a laser beam. It...
argon-fluoride excimer laser
An argon-fluoride (ArF) excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that operates using a mixture of argon and fluorine...
inertial confinement fusion
Inertial confinement fusion (ICF) is a method of achieving nuclear fusion, a process where two atomic nuclei combine to...
frequency domain
The frequency domain is a concept used in signal processing and analysis to represent signals and data in terms of their...
attoampere
An attoampere (aA) is a unit of electric current in the International System of Units (SI). It is equal to one quintillionth...
Er:YAG laser
An Er:YAG laser is a type of solid-state laser that uses a crystal made of erbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet...
image segmentation
Image segmentation is a fundamental process in computer vision and image processing that involves partitioning an image into...
servo motion
Servo motion is the controlled motion of a mechanical system achieved through the use of a servo motor, which utilizes...
topology
Topology is a branch of mathematics that focuses on the properties of space that are preserved under continuous...
averted vision
In astronomy, the method of deliberately viewing objects with peripheral vision to take advantage of the eye's greater...
excitron
A single-anode mercury pool tube that is designed to maintain a continuous cathode spot.
astronomical mirror
An astronomical mirror, also known as a telescope mirror or primary mirror, is a key component of a reflecting telescope. It...
infrared jamming
A countermeasure used against heat seeking missiles to reduce their effectiveness. Normally it involves the emittance of...
ablative wall flashlamp
An ablative wall flashlamp typically refers to a type of flashlamp used in certain high-energy laser systems. ...
curvilinear distortion
A lens aberration in which the focal length varies radially outward from the center of the field. It has the effect of...
masking
In image processing, the assigning of certain portions (or pixels) of an image a constant value of either 0 (black) or 1...
photomultiplier tube
A photomultiplier tube (PMT) is a highly sensitive vacuum tube that detects and amplifies low levels of light. It is widely...
colloidal quantum dots
Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are nanometer-sized semiconductor particles that are dispersed in a colloidal solution. These...
photoelastic constant
A formulaic description of the linear change of the reciprocal optical dielectric tensor with either stress or strain.
light throughput efficiency
The fraction of incident light power in an optical modulator that is available to the output beam.
air bearing
A support device in which a column or chamber of air permits the free travel of a mobile part. In optical mounting and...
azadioxatriangulenium
Azadioxatriangulenium is a type of organic compound with a unique triangular molecular structure. It is often abbreviated as...
off-axis paraboloid and ellipsoid mirror
Off-axis paraboloid and ellipsoid mirrors are specialized optical components used in various optical systems, particularly...
fiber photometry
An optical recording technique that uses light source(s), a beamsplitting cube, light detector(s) and an optical fiber...
ambient temperature
The prevailing temperature in the immediate vicinity of the object; the temperature of its environment.
digital signal processing
Digital signal processing (DSP) refers to the manipulation and analysis of signals, which are representations of physical...
heat sink
A heat sink for a laser is a device designed to absorb and dissipate the excess heat generated by the laser during...
Mylar
E.I. duPont's trade name for a polyester film. The most practical beamsplitter for use beyond the 15-µm wavelength...
ion laser
A laser in which the transition involved in stimulated emission of radiation takes place between two levels of an ionized...
APD detector
An APD detector, or avalanche photodiode detector, is a type of photodetector used to detect light or optical signals by...
Glan spectrophotometer
A device similar to the ordinary spectrophotometer but containing particular modifications to provide for the comparison of...
quantum dot light-emitting diode
Quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED) is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are semiconductor...
tempered glass
A glass that is heated, then chilled (usually by an air blast) to set up internal stresses so that the surfaces are under...
glide plane
The plane shared by the pair of axes in a twin crystal.
high-pressure cloud chamber
A cloud chamber designed to maintain the gas within it at a high pressure as a means of reducing the range of the...
chain scission
The breakdown of the bonds in polymer chains caused by illumination.
nitrogen vacancy
A nitrogen vacancy (NV) refers to a specific type of defect or impurity in a crystal lattice where a nitrogen atom replaces...
phase screen
A phase screen, in the context of optics and wave optics, refers to a surface or medium that introduces a phase delay to an...
diffraction
Diffraction is a fundamental wave phenomenon that occurs when a wave encounters an obstacle or aperture, causing the wave to...
Monte Carlo simulation
Simulation of radiative transfer in which each photon is generated by a source and its path through the medium is...
volume Bragg gratings
Volume Bragg gratings (VBGs) are specialized optical elements that consist of periodic variations in refractive index...
bright-line spectrum
An emission spectrum consisting of bright bands against a dark background.
multimodality imaging
A technique that combines two or more imaging processes in order to minimize the disadvantages within each of the...
metabolic imaging
Metabolic imaging refers to the visualization and quantification of metabolic processes within living organisms, tissues, or...
microbubble resonator
A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It...
Kerr effect
The Kerr effect, named after the physicist John Kerr who first observed it in 1875, is a nonlinear optical phenomenon where...
surface-enhanced Raman scattering
Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful analytical technique that enhances the Raman scattering signal of...
chromaticity diagram
The plane diagram produced by plotting one of the three chromaticity coordinates (X,Y,Z) against another. The most common...
optical probe
An optical probe is a device equipped with optical components such as lenses, fibers, or detectors, designed to transmit and...
laser diode module
A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...
scanning electron microscope
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a powerful imaging instrument used in scientific research, materials...
relative brightness
A figure of merit corresponding to the amount of light seen by a viewer through binoculars. A higher number indicates a...
pseudo-second-derivative
A method used to approximate the values of the homogeneous second derivatives at each iteration in the course of lens design...
aspheric mirror
An aspheric mirror is an optical mirror surface that deviates from the shape of a perfect sphere, having a non-spherical...
tracking accuracy
Measurement of a translation stage's deviation from absolute straightness, that is, its angular motion in both the vertical...
micro-robotics
Micro-robotics refers to the field of robotics that involves the design, development, and application of miniature robotic...
active layer
In the context of semiconductors and electronics, the active layer is the part of a semiconductor device where the essential...
infrared camera
An infrared camera, also known as a thermal imaging camera or IR camera, is a device that captures and visualizes the...
secondary color
An aberration that remains after primary color is corrected. Primary color causes the back focus of a lens to vary with...
camera shutter
An apparatus, designed for use with a camera, that is used to rapidly open the path from lens to film, to maintain the...
unmanned aerial vehicle
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot onboard. UAVs are remotely...
solar simulator
A solar simulator is a device used to replicate the spectrum and intensity of sunlight in a controlled environment for...
fiber joints
Fiber joints, also known as fiber optic splices, refer to the connection points where two optical fibers are permanently...
scanning moire topography
A contour mapping technique that uses electronic scanning and sampling techniques instead of a reference grating (see moire...
Abbe refractometer
An Abbe refractometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the refractive index of liquids and solids. Named after the...
cassette
A container designed to hold recording material (film, video- and audiotape) so that when it is loaded into a recording...
polarization-preserving fiber
Single-mode fiber that preserves the plane of polarization of the light launched into it as the beam propagates through its...
event-based sensor
An event-based image sensor, also known as a dynamic vision sensor (DVS), is a type of digital imaging device designed to...
analog
A physical variable that is proportionally similar to another variable over a specified range. An analog recording contains...
laser desorption
A process of forming ions within a given molecular species by incident laser light. The molecular species may remain intact,...
Michelson-Morley experiment
An optical experiment carried out conclusively in 1887 that demonstrated that the ether, a hypothetical medium postulated by...
zoom lens
An optical system of variable focal length, the focal plane remaining in a fixed position. This result is achieved by moving...
gradient-index profile
The term gradient-index profile refers to a specific type of refractive index distribution within an optical material. In...
convex
Convex is an adjective used to describe a surface or shape that curves outward, bulges, or has a rounded and outwardly...
triple aplanat
A compound lens consisting of two negative lenses of flint glass. A double-convex lens of crown glass is cemented between...
diode-pumped solid-state laser
A diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) is a type of laser system that uses semiconductor diode lasers to pump energy into...
beat length
A characteristic of optical fiber used to calculate the fiber's ability to maintain polarization. The beat length describes...
polarization photometer
A photometer having a pair of Nicol prisms introduced into the beam from the brighter of two sources to be compared. Turning...
color scanner
An instrument that uses a beam of light to scan a color transparency, and three differently filtered photosensors to record...
accelerometer
An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms,...
scratch
A defect on a polished optical surface whose length is many times its width. Block reek is a chainlike scratch formed in...
spatial intensity perturbation
A beam instability, induced by index of refraction inhomogeneities and component damage of dirt and dust particles, that...
fusion ignition
Fusion ignition refers to the point in a controlled nuclear fusion reaction where the energy released by the fusion...
fluorochrome
The combination of the organic dye in a stained specimen and the antibodies produced that is detected by exposure to light.
photoresist
Photoresist is a light-sensitive material used in photolithography processes, particularly in the fabrication of...
active optics
Active optics refers to a technology used in telescopes and other optical instruments to improve the quality of images by...
bin picking
Bin picking, also known as bin picking automation or bin picking robotics, refers to the automated process of selecting and...
reflective
The term reflective is an adjective that describes the ability of a surface or material to reflect light or other forms of...
optical coherence tomography imaging system
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics and biomedical research to obtain...
spheric lens
A spheric lens, also known as a spherical lens, is a type of optical lens with at least one surface that is part of a...
lens disc
A rotating disc that holds several lenses of differing focal length about a diameter. Used to switch lenses in a system...
Felgett advantage
The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) obtained with a Fourier transform spectrometer when detector noise prevails, which exceeds...
x-ray spectrometer
An instrument designed to produce an x-ray spectrum of a material as an aid in identifying it. This technique is...
liquid crystal light valve
A liquid crystal light valve (LCLV), also known as a spatial light modulator (SLM), is an optical device that modulates the...
videodisc
A disc whose surface contains recorded digital data at high-packing densities arranged in concentric rings. The data,...
hydroxyl ion absorption
An optical fiber's absorption of electromagnetic waves due to hydroxyl ions remaining after contact with water.
halo
1. The faintly hued ring that is seen to surround a light source viewed through fog or light clouds. The size of scattering...
fluorescent whitening agents
Agents used for testing light sources and natural daylight with visual and instrumental assessment using a set of white...
Weibull distribution
A statistical means of characterizing the failure of a fiber or device as related to strain or time. Results are plotted on...
optical phase distortion
Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through...
edge AI
Edge AI, also known as edge artificial intelligence, refers to the deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms and...
photoelectric relay
A relay that opens or closes an electrical circuit depending on the intensity of the light incident to a photoelectric...
modulation bandwidth
The highest frequency at which a laser diode can be driven and still be modulated acceptably that further results in the...
piezoelectric transducers and ceramic materials
Piezoelectric transducers are devices that utilize the piezoelectric effect to convert electrical energy into mechanical...
optical materials
Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the...
flash radiography
A technique used in radiography to obtain an unblurred image of a moving object by the use of very short x-ray exposures,...
dewetting
Dewetting is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where a thin film or coating spontaneously undergoes a process of...
nonlinear polarization
Nonlinear polarization refers to the phenomenon where the polarization of a material responds nonlinearly to an applied...
temperature controllers
Temperature controllers in photonics are devices used to regulate and maintain the temperature of photonic components and...
laser annealing
Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically...
computational imaging
Computational imaging refers to the use of computational techniques, algorithms, and hardware to enhance or enable imaging...
decibel
The standard unit used to express gain or loss and relative power levels. The decibel (dB) = 10 log (P2/P1).
spectral order (diffraction grating)
When, for example, a beam of monochromatic light passes through a diffraction grating, the emergent rays that have remained...
design and engineering consulting services
Design and engineering consulting services refer to professional services provided by specialized firms or individuals to...
magnification
The ratio of the size of the image of an object to that of the object. The ratio of the linear size of the image to that of...
automatic gain control
A method of producing an essentially constant output signal from an electronic circuit despite variations in the strength of...
active-matrix OLED display
An active matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) display is a type of flat-panel display technology that combines the...
line of sight
The line of vision; the optical axis of a telescope or other observation system. The straight line connecting the object and...
adapter (optical adapter)
An optical adapter typically refers to a device or component used in optical systems to facilitate connections between...
planar access coupler
Low-insertion-loss fiber coupler fabricated from a sheet of light-sensitive material laminated onto a fused quartz substrate...
fiber optic spectrometer
A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...
transversely excited atmosphere laser
Also known as TEA laser. A coherent optical source with a wide wavelength range in the infrared, visible and ultraviolet...
Abbe-Porro prism
An Abbe-Porro prism, often referred to simply as a Porro prism, is an optical prism used in binoculars and other optical...
lapping and polishing services
Lapping and polishing services involve specialized processes used to improve the surface finish and dimensional accuracy of...
points per profile
Points per profile in imaging refers to the density or resolution of data points sampled along a line or profile within an...
spatial condition
The spatial distribution of incident and collected flux contained in the analysis of reflectance, transmittance or densities.
phase distrortion
Phase distortion refers to a change in the phase relationships between different frequency components of a signal. In the...
vacuum spectrograph
A spectrograph that functions in a vacuum and therefore eliminates any air-absorption of the emission being surveyed.
coherent communications
A fiber optic communications system that works on the principles of homodyning or heterodyning. The transmitting laser...
tungsten lamp
An evacuated bulb containing a tungsten filament that is heated by passing an electric current through it. In domestic light...
photochromism
The reversible change in the absorption spectrum of certain compounds upon irradiation with a given wavelength of light.
anisotropy
Anisotropy refers to the property of exhibiting different values or characteristics when measured in different directions....
glow lamp
A lamp in which the ionization of the inert gas contained in it produces a glow in the space close to the negative electrode.
optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...
ion pair
Two oppositely charged particles.
gram positive
Gram-positive bacteria are a group of bacteria that have a thick cell wall composed primarily of a substance called...
chirality
Chirality is a property of certain molecules and objects in which they are non-superimposable on their mirror images. In...
Forbush decrease
Decrease in cosmic ray activity that is observed approximately 24 hours after a solar flare, attributed to a shielding...
advanced communication technology satellite
The advanced communication technology satellite (ACTS) was a program developed by NASA (National Aeronautics and Space...
friability
The resistance of individual grains of an abrasive to breaking down under pressure. If the grains break down under...
galvanoluminescence
The emission of radiant energy produced by the passage of an electrical current through an appropriate electrolyte in which...
gain-bandwidth product
In an avalanche photodiode, the gain multiplied by the signal frequency in MHz.
inverse Compton effect
The interaction between a photon and an energetic electron, caused by collision, that transfers energy from the electron to...