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MOS Dictionary Terms

global optimization
A controlled random search process, such as generalized simulated annealing, that has been incorporated into many optical...
ocean color
Refers to the characteristic hue of the ocean according to the presence and concentration of specific minerals or...
Mie scattering
Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...
tomosynthesis
A variation of tomography in which several photographs of a patient are taken at different angles, and back-projection of...
fluorescent protein
Fluorescent proteins are proteins that exhibit the property of fluorescence, which is the ability to absorb light at a...
turbulence propagation medium
Simulation of atmospheric turbulence for laboratory experimentation purposes, achieved by creating an unstable vertical...
thermoset plastic
 Dewar vessel
An evacuated, double-walled container for storing liquids at low temperatures. Often made of glass, the vessel resembles a...
spectral domain optical coherence tomography
Spectral domain optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...
luminescence
Luminescence is the emission of light that occurs without the involved substance undergoing a significant increase in...
coherent optical adaptive technique
The use of phase conjugation or other methods to increase the power density of a laser beam under adverse atmospheric...
laser cloud mapper
A scanning laser radar system applied to transmission and concentration analysis in three dimensions of clouds as well as...
Fraunhofer lines
The dark absorption lines observed in the spectrum of the photosphere of the sun. There are thousands of these lines, the...
hybrid mosaic on stacked silicon
A sensor module used in advanced pattern recognition systems, containing signal-processing integrated circuits stacked and...
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...
gas-transport laser
A gas laser wherein the gas mixture is not exhausted into the atmosphere but is continually recycled. It is excited in the...
zodiacal light
The sunlight that extends to the earth after scattering from other solar bodies, mostly from meteorite dust of radii...
second-order nonlinear optical properties
Second-order nonlinear optical properties refer to a class of phenomena exhibited by certain materials in response to...
fish-eye lens
A type of wide-angle lens that has an angular field above 140° and that exhibits barrel distortion. The most commonly...
fluorescence photography
The photographic recording of a subject that exhibits luminescence only for an extremely short time (10-8 s) after the...
normal dispersion
Dispersion characterized by an increasing index of refraction in the medium as the frequency of the propagating light...
diverging lens
A diverging lens is a type of lens that causes parallel rays of light to spread out or diverge. It is thinner in the center...
Lummer-Gehrcke plate
A high-resolution spectroscopic device commonly used in the early 20th century as a component of double-beam...
long-path absorption spectroscopy
The method that, by measuring the absorption along an atmospheric path at wavelengths ranging from two to a continuum, can...
remote sensing
Remote sensing is a method of data collection and observation where information about objects, areas, or phenomena on...
glass
A noncrystalline, inorganic mixture of various metallic oxides fused by heating with glassifiers such as silica, or boric or...
lensless microscopy
Lensless microscopy, also known as computational or holographic microscopy, is an imaging technique that captures and...
grazing incidence
Light striking a surface at an angle almost perpendicular to the normal.
angular aperture
The angle between the most divergent rays that can pass through the lens to form an image. In a birefringent crystal light...
short wavelength infrared
Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...
heat treating
The process of subjecting glass to temperature cycling to produce physico-chemical reactions that alter its properties....
linear image sensor
A linear image sensor is a type of solid-state electronic device used to capture and convert light into electrical signals....
crystal
A solid with a structure that exhibits a basically symmetrical and geometrical arrangement. A crystal may already possess...
CID camera
CID, or charge injection device, camera refers to a type of imaging device that utilizes a specific kind of solid-state...
hot spot
Term applied to laser technology to denote an area of above-average intensity often attributable to atmospheric...
particle image velocimetry
A whole-flow-field technique providing instantaneous velocity vector measurements in a cross-section of a flow that is...
scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
Scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (sCMOS) refers to a type of image sensor technology specifically designed...
Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor
The Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor is an optical device used for measuring the wavefront aberrations of an optical system....
band head
The measured wavelength of the most distinct edge of a spectral band.
complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) refers to a technology used in the fabrication of integrated circuits,...
organic dye laser
A laser having a lasing material that is a fluorescing organic dye. Depending on the dye used, it can produce emission in...
fiber optic spectrometer
A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...
grating beamsplitter
A grating beamsplitter is an optical device that utilizes the principles of diffraction to split a beam of light into...
mosaic mirror
A large telescope mirror fabricated from several smaller sections.
graphene
Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal...
colloid
A particle that will not normally diffuse through animal or vegetable membrane. Larger than most inorganic compounds,...
Rockwell hardness
Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation...
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...
telephotometry
The principles and techniques involved in the use of telephotometers to measure atmospheric extinction.
filovirus
Filoviruses are a family of viruses that are responsible for severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers in humans and...
sensitometer
An instrument for determining the sensitivity of a photographic film to light. The film is given either a stepped exposure...
tip-enhanced Raman scattering
Tip-enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) is a powerful technique that combines Raman spectroscopy with the enhanced spatial...
spectrographic slits
The slits in a spectrograph that form images of spectral lines. Slits may be bilateral or unilateral, and generally close...
optoisolator
An optical coupling device that uses light to bridge the gap between incompatible wire communications systems. It contains...
quantum key distribution
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method of secure communication that utilizes principles from quantum mechanics to...
borescope
A device for the internal inspection of hard-to-get-at mechanical parts, such as rifle barrels, sewer pipes, oil wells, or...
diurnal aberration
Atmospheric aberration caused by the Earth's rotation; the degree varies from 0 at the poles to a maximum of 0.31 s of arc...
deliquescent
Description of a material, such as a water-soluble salt, that will continue absorbing moisture from the surrounding...
stroboscope
A device that produces brief flashes of light for observing the behavior of an object during a short interval. One of the...
mask spectrometer
Instrument that uses absorption spectroscopy to detect gases in planetary atmospheres. Dispersed incoming radiation is...
Faraday rotation
The effect discovered by Faraday in 1845 whereby nonoptically active materials or substances become capable of rotating the...
mutual coherent function
A function that quantifies the performance degradation of coherent communications systems, imaging systems and all systems...
auxiliary telescope
A low-power telescope placed at the eyepiece of an optical system to increase overall magnification. Most often used to...
haze filter
A filter, used in photography, that absorbs the ultraviolet and extreme blue violet radiation scattered by atmospheric haze.
speckle imaging
A technique for obtaining improved resolution of images produced by large telescopes and distorted by the effects of...
receiver primaries
Also known as display primaries. Colors formed by a television receiver that are of constant chromaticity and variable...
microfilm equipment
Two essential pieces of equipment used in connection with the microfilming process: a camera capable of producing, on film,...
far-infrared grating
A grating with very coarse rulings to match the long wavelengths in the far-infrared region. In the most efficient ruling...
mercury arc
An electric arc that is formed in mercury vapor through which an electric current flows. The intensity of the illumination...
CMOS image sensor
A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used...
fused silica
Glass consisting of almost pure silicon dioxide (SiO2). Also called vitreous silica. Frequently used in optical fibers and...
coated optics
Optical elements that have been coated with one or more layers of dielectric, or metallic material. These coatings serve to...
color aging test
A test used to measure the degree of fading of different colored materials, especially those involving organic dyes, which...
multiplexing
The combination of two or more signals for transmission along a single wire, path or carrier. In most optical communication...
retina camera
A special-purpose camera used by ophthalmologists to photograph the retina of the eye. The optical system operates through...
ophthalmoscopy
Also referred to as fundus photography, ophthalmoscopy is the dioptrical study of the various interior components of the eye...
thin film
A thin layer of a substance deposited on an insulating base in a vacuum by a microelectronic process. Thin films are most...
actinic glass
Glass designed to absorb most infrared and ultraviolet radiation while transmitting most of the visible region.
neoprene
A type of thermoset rubber used to jacket fiber optic cables, including those used in outdoor military installations.
autocollimating spectrograph
A spectrograph in which the refracted beam returns almost along the path traveled by the incident beam, and is brought to a...
actinic focus
That point in the electromagnetic spectrum at which an optical system focuses the most chemically effective rays.
inferior mirage
A mirage that consists of an image of an object appearing below its true position as the result of abnormal refraction by...
clear aperture
The limited light-gathering area of an optical system. The area is normally restricted to an edge or outer surface of an...
photochemical
The term photochemical pertains to chemical processes or reactions that are initiated or influenced by the absorption of...
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...
transmission limit
A restricting wavelength above or below which a specified form of radiation is totally almost absorbed by a specified medium.
area scan
Area scan, in the context of imaging and cameras, refers to a method of capturing an entire two-dimensional image in a...
segment height
In a bifocal spectacle lens, the vertical measurement of distance from the uppermost borderline of the bifocal segment to...
deformable mirror device
A spatial light modulator consisting of a metallized polymer film stretched over an array of metal-oxide semiconductor...
laser guide star
An artificial star used to aid in adaptive optics imaging of the sky. The guide star is provided from a telescope system on...
Rayleigh scattering
Rayleigh scattering is a phenomenon that occurs when light waves interact with particles or molecules that are much smaller...
refractive index contrast
A measure of the relative difference in refractive index between two optical materials. Most commonly used in fiber optics...
Lorentz oscillator model
The Lorentz oscillator model is a theoretical model used in physics to describe the response of a charged particle (such as...
metamaterial
Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties not found in naturally occurring substances. These...
photonic crystals
Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...
reference surface
The surface of an optical fiber that is used as a reference when joining optical fibers. Although the outermost cladding is...
spatial light modulator
A spatial light modulator (SLM) is an optical device that modulates or manipulates the amplitude, phase, or polarization of...
thyristor
A family of semiconductor switching devices of which the silicon-controlled rectifier and the triac are most commonly used....
replica grating
A reproduction made of an original grating -- usually by casting thermosetting plastics onto the original -- to avoid the...
mirage
The distortion of an object's true image as the result of abnormal atmospheric disturbances along the path traveled by the...
optical page reader
An optical scanning system found in most computer scanners that can read documents, often in many type styles, and convert...
aurora
The strongest light emitted by the Earth's upper atmosphere. It most often can be viewed in the Arctic as the aurora...
multispectral imaging
Multispectral imaging is a technique that involves capturing and analyzing images at multiple discrete spectral bands within...
chirping
A rapid change, as opposed to a long-term drift, of the emission wavelength of an optical source. Chirping is most often...
Casimir force
The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged...
wobble
In micropositioning systems, motion (most frequently undesired) about the Z-axis.
chromosphere
A layer between the corona and the photosphere of the sun; its emission is overwhelmed by light emitted by the underlying,...
kinetic cooling
An atmospheric nonlinear process unique to CO2 laser wavelengths, whereby CO2 absorbs 10.6-µm radiation and the CO2...
metallographic polishing machine
A small optical polishing machine intended for polishing the surface of a metal specimen before etching for examination...
refractometer
An instrument used to measure the refractive index of solids and liquids. Several types exist, the most common being the...
mid-wave infrared
MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...
scintillation
1. The variation in intensity of a light beam as it travels through the atmosphere. 2. In radiation physics, a light flash...
atmospheric absorption line parameters compilation
Compilation of the Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories that contains values of the line parameters of the 1-0 bands of...
reflectance estimate
The output of spectral channels written as an integral function of known solar irradiance, atmospheric transmittance and...
pathogen
A pathogen is a biological agent, such as a virus, bacterium, fungus, protozoan, or parasite, that causes disease in its...
paraxial ray
A ray that behaves according to paraxial equations; one that lies close to and almost parallel to the optical axis.
atmospheric optics
The analysis of the properties of radiation, such as light, when acted upon by variations in the atmosphere. Blue and red...
millibar (mbar)
A unit of pressure, one-thousandth of a bar, equivalent to 100 Pascal and 0.75 torr. One atmosphere equals 1013 mbar.
quantum cascade laser
A quantum cascade laser (QCL) is a type of semiconductor laser that operates based on the principles of quantum mechanics....
extraterrestrial radiation
Radiation that is emitted by a source outside the Earth and its atmosphere.
ophthalmic instruments
A family of specialized instruments used by ophthalmologists and optometrists to study a patient's eyes and prescribe...
solid-state imaging system
An imaging system that uses a mosaic of tiny light-sensitive semiconductors (phototransistors) to produce individual outputs...
harmonic generation
Harmonic generation refers to a nonlinear optical process in which incoming photons interact with a material and produce new...
diamond cutting tool
A tool made by imbedding small particles of diamond in the working edge. In the optical field, the most commonly used...
neodymium:YAG
Literally, neodymium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet. A cylindrical rod of yttrium-aluminum-garnet doped with neodymium that is the...
ultraprecision cathode-ray tube display
A highly accurate cathode-ray tube used to display information with the utmost efficient stability and resolution. The...
antisolar point
The point to which the extension of the straight line, reaching from the sun to the observer's eye after penetrating the...
lidar
Lidar, short for light detection and ranging, is a remote sensing technology that uses laser light to measure distances and...
atmospheric attenuation
The reduction in luminance of a light beam due to absorption and scattering as it passes through the atmosphere.
horizontal temperature gradients
Horizontal concentrations that comprise the dominant factor in atmospheric gradient correction. The range bias near due...
Dobson spectrophotometer
A spectrophotometer that measures the amount of ozone in the atmosphere through a comparison of solar energy at two...
well plate
A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...
semiconductor
A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In...
low Earth orbit
Low Earth orbit (LEO) refers to a region in space that is relatively close to Earth's surface, typically characterized by...
3D printing
3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), is a manufacturing process that builds three-dimensional objects...
optical contact
The adhesion of two sufficiently clean and close-fitting surfaces without the use of cement or glue. The optically contacted...
infrared detector
An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...
phonon
A phonon is a quantum of vibrational energy associated with the periodic motion of atoms or molecules in a crystalline...
Fried length
The length of the small space within which the atmosphere exhibits coherence, particularly in relation to an observer on...
ophthalmoscope
Also referred to as a funduscope, an ophthalmoscope is a specialized instrument used by ophthalmologists for observing and...
aerial perspective
An optical illusion in which distant objects are lighter in tone and less distinct in outline than those closer to the...
hardness
In the most general sense, the resistance of a solid surface to damage.
eye test apparatus
Instruments used by ophthalmologists and optometrists to study the eye. There are, for instance, the ophthalmoscope to...
integration time
Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a...
thermosetting cement
An adhesive that permanently sets or hardens at a specified high temperature. Methacrylate is an example of a thermosetting...
free-space optics
Free-space optics (FSO), also known as optical wireless communication or optical wireless networking, refers to the...
ducting
Propagation of electromagnetic waves through the Earth's atmosphere in a path that conforms to the curvature of the Earth...
linear plastic
A term for thermoplastic optical materials; that is, those in which the polymer chains remain linear after heating and...
modulation transfer function
Also called sine wave response and contrast transfer function. The modulation transfer function is the ratio of the...
radiation-shielding windows
Plates of glass containing as many heavy metal oxides as can be dissolved in the glass without causing devitrification. The...
chromaticity diagram
The plane diagram produced by plotting one of the three chromaticity coordinates (X,Y,Z) against another. The most common...
airglow
Diffuse light emitted by the atmosphere due to the excitation of particles of atmospheric gas. These excited particles...
CubeSat
A CubeSat is a type of miniaturized satellite characterized by its standardized size and modular design. CubeSats are...
electron
A charged elementary particle of an atom; the term is most commonly used in reference to the negatively charged particle...
optical phase distortion
Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through...
sapphire
Sapphire can refer to either a gemstone or a specific type of crystalline material commonly used in various industrial...
fusion ignition
Fusion ignition refers to the point in a controlled nuclear fusion reaction where the energy released by the fusion...
Mossbauer effect spectroscopy
Spectroscopy characterized by the Mossbauer effect - recoilless emission and absorption of nuclear gamma radiation- which...
liquid crystal
Liquid crystals are a state of matter that exhibits properties intermediate between those of conventional liquids and solid...
chemosphere
Also known as mesosphere. A level of the atmosphere, extending from the stratosphere to the ionosphere, that is noted for...
balloon-borne astronomical system
Any instrument or system carried by a balloon to the upper atmosphere to measure and record atmospheric information, such as...
Mylar
E.I. duPont's trade name for a polyester film. The most practical beamsplitter for use beyond the 15-µm wavelength...
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...
image plane holography
A hologram in which the image of an object, or the object itself, is located near the hologram recording plane, for optimum...
atmospheric window
A range of wavelengths within which radiation transmitted through the atmosphere suffers relatively little absorption by...
astronomical scintillation
Any irregular motion, variation in intensity or change in color that arises because of atmospheric turbulence during the...
didymium glass
Glass tinted with mixed oxides of neodymium and praseodymium that, unlike most solid materials, have absorption bands that...
charge-coupled device
A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital...
graded index
Descriptive of an optical fiber having a core refractive index that decreases almost parabolically and radially outward...
laser-induced fluorescence
Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is a spectroscopic technique that involves using a laser to excite molecules or atoms,...
standard refraction
The refraction that would take place in an idealized atmosphere where the refractive index is reduced uniformly with height...
digital camera
A digital camera is a device that captures and records still images or video in digital format. Unlike traditional film...
retroreflector
A retroreflector is an optical device or structure that reflects incident light or electromagnetic waves back to their...
wafer
In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...
double-clad fiber
Double-clad fiber (DCF) is a specialized optical fiber that features two concentric cladding layers surrounding a core. The...
nonlinear optics
Nonlinear optics is a branch of optics that studies the optical phenomena that occur when intense light interacts with a...
quantum efficiency
Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...
thyratron
An arc discharge tube having a grid that is used to start the discharge through an atmosphere of inert gas or vapor at low...
linear optics
Linear optics refers to the study and manipulation of light in a linear and deterministic manner, where the response of...
atmospheric inhomogeneities
Localized variations in the purity and the index of refraction of the atmosphere.
circular dichroism spectroscopy
A type of spectroscopy used extensively in the analysis of biological samples. Because most biologically synthesized...
electron multiplication charge-coupled device camera
An EMCCD (electron-multiplying charge-coupled device) camera is a type of scientific camera specifically designed for...
machine vision system
A machine vision system is an integrated combination of hardware and software components designed to capture, process, and...
fused quartz and silica
Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...
iconoscope
A camera tube that employs a high-velocity electron beam to scan a photoemissive mosaic and to store electrical charge...
dust extinction
In atmospheric optics, the almost total blocking of light transmission in the atmosphere due to the scattering and...
transversely excited atmosphere laser
Also known as TEA laser. A coherent optical source with a wide wavelength range in the infrared, visible and ultraviolet...
achromat
An achromat, in the context of optics, refers to a type of lens or lens system designed to reduce chromatic aberration....
photoconductive antenna
Photoconductive antenna (PCA) is a semiconductor element that generates or detects high-frequency electromagnetic signals....
intensity interferometer
An interferometer that functions by first detecting the light striking each aperture and then combining the two detector...
terahertz
Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1...
CMOS camera
A CMOS camera refers to an imaging device that employs a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to...
modulation transfer function analysis/measurement equipment
MTF analysis/measurement equipment refers to instruments and tools used to measure and analyze the modulation transfer...
fluorescence
Fluorescence is a type of luminescence, which is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other...
optical materials
Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the...
radial distortion
An alteration in magnification from the center of the field to any point in the field, measured in a radial direction from...
surface plate
A large table with an accurately designed plane surface used to test other surfaces, or to provide a true surface for...
ideal crystal
A crystal that is devoid of any mosaic structure and that can reflect x-rays, relative to the Darwin-Ewald-Prins law.
CMOS quantitative polymerase chain reaction system
This type of miniaturized system, referred to as CMOS qPCR, combines microfluidic technology with an ultralow-light CMOS...
polycrystal
A substance that transmits the infrared, but which is too delicate or fragile to be used in the form of a single crystal....
optical chopper
A mechanical or electrical-electromagnetic device for periodically interrupting or blocking abeam of light for a brief known...
macula lutea
The small central portion of the human retina that is responsible for providing the clearest, and most distinct aspects of...
Angstrom coefficient
The coefficient Å in Angstrom's formula for the dispersing coefficient for dust present in the atmosphere. The formula...
holographic camera
A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...
Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry and physics to study vibrational, rotational, and other...
McClatchey model
Calculation of gas and aerosol transmission and emission characteristics for several model atmospheres, including two model...
mosaic
One surface of a nonconducting plate that is coated with many minute particles of photoemissive material that are insulated...
extreme ultraviolet
Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....
box camera
The simplest, most inexpensive type of camera, which is shaped as an oblong or square box, containing the simplest lens,...
superior mirage
An image of an object that appears above the object's true position as the result of abnormal refraction of the image rays...
electrophoretic display
An electrophoretic display, often referred to as an electronic paper display or e-paper display, is a type of electronic...
scanner
1. A device used to trace out an object and build up an image. One of the most common of these types is video scanning. The...
infrared spectrophotometer
A spectrophotometer having a prism or, more frequently, a grating for the study and recording of infrared spectra. It...
Nichols radiometer
An instrument devised by Nichols and Hull for use in the measurement of radiation pressure. The device has two small...
manometer
A device used to measure the pressure of gases and vapors, without regard to atmospheric pressure.
long-wave infrared
Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...
principal plane
In a lens or lens system, that surface at which the projections of an entering and exiting ray intersect. Also known as the...
phase translation
The propagation or hindrance of waves reaching each aperture of the interferometer because of atmospheric turbulence.
infrared window
1. A thin parallel plate of material that transmits in the infrared region. See infrared optical material. 2. A spectral...
network interface card
A network interface card (NIC), also known as a network adapter or LAN adapter, is a hardware component that allows...
irradiated cross-linked polyolefin
A thermosetting material used in the jacket of fiber optic cables.
imbedding material
A thermoplastic or thermosetting material used to hold an object fixed and keep it from deterioration. In microcircuitry,...
ellipsometer
A spectrometer equipped with polarizing prisms and retardation plates that is used in the analysis of elliptically polarized...
optical transform image modulation
A technique for detecting and measuring atmospheric pollution, in which an oscillating mirror directs half the incoming...
flicker noise
Any noise with a power spectral density that is the inverse of the signal's frequency and is therefore most significant for...
transversely excited atmosphere carbon dioxide laser
Abbreviated TEA CO2 laser. A gas laser that provides shorter pulses and higher peak powers than conventional CO2 lasers. The...
CMOS
 real-time processing
The ability of a vision system to interpret an image in a short enough time to keep pace with most operations.
holmium laser
Holmium lasers are a type of medical laser that utilizes holmium-doped crystals as the gain medium. The term holmium laser...
dynamic stare sensor
A type of mosaic detector array that combines features of scanning and staring sensors by using a small rapid scanning...
orthicon
A television camera tube in which a low-velocity electron beam scans a photoactive mosaic that has been created by an...
dichroic polarizer
A polarizer that consists of dichroic polarizing material embedded in a plastic sheet, and that transmits light that is...
flash photographic density filter
A filter, partially opaque to near-ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation, that may be made by exposing and processing...
CCD image sensor
A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images...
mosaic structure
In a crystal, its subdivision into polyhedral blocks of macroscopic sizes, with discontinuities contained in the lattice...
lenticular
An array or mosaic of optical surfaces. May be a number of lenses closely packed to form multiple images or many parallel...
torr
A unit of pressure of 1 mm Hg, equivalent to 133 P. One atmosphere = 760 torr. (t).
Fried's seeing parameter
A calculated function that can be achieved experimentally with interferometric analysis of complex atmospheric altitude;...
atmospheric turbulence
Irregularities and disturbances in the atmosphere that are of particular interest because they induce random temporal and...
case hardening
A surface heat-treating process that produces a highly stressed surface. In case-hardening of glass, a plate of glass is...
dispersion
Dispersion refers to the phenomenon where different wavelengths (colors) of light travel at different speeds when passing...
Dammann grating
A Dammann grating is a type of diffractive optical element (DOE) used to create an array of equally spaced,...
optical tooling target
Sets of paired lines carefully designed to give the most accurate pointing possible for various lengths of sight.
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...
microphotonics
The technology of manipulating light on a micro scale. In optical communications, this is usually accomplished using two or...
high-speed motion camera
A high-speed motion camera, also known as a high-speed camera or slow-motion camera, is a specialized imaging device...
optical clock
An optical clock is a highly precise and advanced timekeeping device that relies on the oscillations of electromagnetic...
optical air mass
A measure of the optical path length for light traveling from the sun or other celestial source through Earth's atmosphere...
catadioptric imaging system
A system that uses both reflection and refraction to achieve its focal power. While the relative powers of the lenses and...
isosorbs
Lines of equal atmospheric attenuation in a laser beam.
nanotube
A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of...
allyl diglycol carbonate
Commonly known as CR39, this thermosetting plastic is used in the casting of eyeglass lenses because of its toughness and...
continuous spectrum
The radiation spectrum of matter found in condensed states, liquid or solid, that is continuous and not a line spectrum. The...
atomic clock
An atomic clock is a highly precise timekeeping device that uses the vibrations or oscillations of atoms as a reference for...
detector array
A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....
suprathermal ion detector
A mass spectrometer used to detect ions formed by photo- and charge-exchange ionization of gases, such as those in the lunar...
fixed-pattern noise
Fixed-pattern noise is the measure of the static (nontemporal) differences between pixels when the detector is evenly...
image quality
A measure of the closeness with which an optical image is capable of resembling the original object. The factors that affect...
internet of things
The internet of things (IoT) refers to a network of interconnected physical devices, vehicles, appliances, and other objects...
adaptive optics
Adaptive optics (AO) is a technology used to improve the performance of optical systems by reducing the effects of...
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,...
attenuation
Attenuation refers to the gradual loss or reduction of intensity, force, or magnitude of a particular property as it...
color center
A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...
pyrex
Trade name for a type of borosilicate glass manufactured by Corning Glass Works, noted for its low coefficient of thermal...
notch filter
Also referred to as a band-stop or band rejection filter; a notch filter is a filter that is designed to screen out a very...
looming
A form of mirage where objects near or just below the horizon appear in enlarged or distorted form because of atmospheric...
spicule
A feature in the chromosphere of the sun formed by a jet of gas that reaches from the chromosphere into the corona and has...
SPIN
Acronym for self-aligned polysilicon interconnect N-channel. A metal-gate process that uses aluminum for the metal-oxide...
Monte Carlo simulation
Simulation of radiative transfer in which each photon is generated by a source and its path through the medium is...
ocular accommodation reflex
The eye's involuntary reaction in the process of accommodation. This reflex is most dramatic in response to looking at a...
polymer
Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...
linewidth
1. The range of frequencies or wavelengths over which radiations are absorbed or emitted in a transition between a specific...
atmospheric refraction correlation
Formulaic compensation to correct laser ranging data for the effects of horizontal refractivity gradients; it requires the...
phototherapy
Phototherapy is a medical treatment that involves the use of light to treat various conditions, particularly those related...

(274 results found)

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