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

A mounting used for large concave gratings, whereby the slit, grating and plate holder lie in the Rowland circle, and the...

A range of wavelengths within which radiation transmitted through the atmosphere suffers relatively little absorption by...

Circular dichroism (CD) is a spectroscopic technique used to study the structural characteristics of chiral (asymmetric)...

Fluorescent proteins are proteins that exhibit the property of fluorescence, which is the ability to absorb light at a...

In rangefinders and height finders, a rotatable or sliding wedge-shaped element used to divert the line of sight precisely...

A sputtering target is a solid material used in the process of physical vapor deposition (PVD), specifically sputtering....

A laser, which stands for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," is a device that produces coherent and...

Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...

A fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) is a type of gyroscope that uses the interference of light waves to detect changes in...

A CCD camera, or charge-coupled device camera, is a type of digital camera that utilizes a CCD image sensor to capture and...

A quantum cascade laser (QCL) is a type of semiconductor laser that operates based on the principles of quantum mechanics....

An achromat, in the context of optics, refers to a type of lens or lens system designed to reduce chromatic aberration....

A wedge in a rangefinder or heightfinder used to displace the image produced by one telescope so that it coincides with that...

Pixel binning, also known as pixel merging or pixel combining, is a technique used in digital imaging and camera technology....

A swept-source laser, also known as a wavelength-swept laser, is a type of laser that rapidly and continuously changes its...

A type of camera that has scales or other arrangements by which successive exposures can be lined up and equally spaced on a...

Any systemic process that ultimately reassembles all the system's components into their initial alignment, or an arrangement...

The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a...

Any pyrheliometer that has a filter placed over its sensor to limit the range of solar radiation it will detect; used to...

Laser surgery refers to a medical procedure in which a laser, or focused beam of light, is used as a precision tool to cut,...

FTIR (Fourier transform infrared) spectrometer is a powerful analytical instrument used to obtain an infrared spectrum of...

The analysis of the atomic structure of a sample by means of a source radiation that is absorbed and emitted by the sample...

An arrangement of optical fibers in a bundle whereby the geometric configuration of the input end differs from that of the...

A waveguide is a physical structure or device that is designed to confine and guide electromagnetic waves, such as radio...

A phage, short for bacteriophage, is a type of virus that infects and replicates within bacteria. Phages are composed of...

A mechanical shutter that has had its timing escapement replaced with an electronic timing circuit. This circuit allows a...

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....

An instrument designed to collect naturally formed extraterrestrial electromagnetic radiation within the radio frequency...

Optical character recognition (OCR) is a technology that is used to convert printed or handwritten text into...

An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized...

Epitaxial deposition is a process used in semiconductor manufacturing and materials science to grow a thin crystalline...

Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...

In a liquid crystal system, the director refers to the local symmetry axis around which the long range order of the liquid...

In fiber optics, the use of a detector to study the range of refractive indices achieved at various wavelengths. This...

Epitaxial refers to the growth of a crystalline layer on a crystalline substrate in such a way that the orientation of the...

Reflectance spectroscopy is a technique used to analyze the reflective properties of materials across various wavelengths of...

Hyperspectral resolution refers to the level of detail or granularity in the spectral information captured by a...

A lidar (light detection and ranging) technique used in pollution monitoring. Two light beams are emitted simultaneously,...

A PIN photodiode is a type of photodetector or semiconductor device used to convert light signals into electrical signals....

In image processing and elsewhere, generally an adjective to describe an assembly-line arrangement for performing a task....

A group of solar cells that are electrically contacted and physically arranged so that they may be oriented in the direction...

A diagnostic instrument that uses a photocathode design to see a broad range of x-ray radiation by streaking the...

Any filter in which the range of frequencies within a chosen radius suffers no attenuation and the range of frequencies...

An infrared lens is an optical component specifically designed and optimized for transmitting, focusing, or manipulating...

In a crystalline substance, the spectral range of states of energy that contains the crystal's binding valence electrons.

Thin-film coating, single or multilayer, that is applied to a substrate to increase its reflectance over a specified range...

An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current...

A sapphire window refers to a transparent optical component made from sapphire crystal. Sapphire is a single-crystal form of...

A physical variable that is proportionally similar to another variable over a specified range. An analog recording contains...

A light source that emits an uneven distribution of radiant energy through the visible range.

Rayleigh scattering is a phenomenon that occurs when light waves interact with particles or molecules that are much smaller...

Ultraviolet (UV) fiber optics refers to optical fibers that are designed and optimized for the transmission of ultraviolet...

The entrance slit, also known simply as the slit, is an essential component in optical instruments such as spectrometers and...

A free-electron laser (FEL) is a type of laser that generates coherent, high-intensity electromagnetic radiation by using a...

A display device that contains an inert gas that gives off orange light when a high voltage is applied to ionize the gas.

Cold atoms refer to atoms that have been cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically in the microkelvin (µK) to...

A MEMS fiber optic switch is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device designed to selectively route optical signals...

A near-infrared (NIR) camera is an imaging device designed to capture images in the near-infrared region of the...

Luminous flux emitted by a source in a given range of directions; the unit of measure is the lumen/steradian, now known as...

A Fresnel lens is a type of optical lens that consists of a series of concentric grooves or steps carved into a flat, thin...

In optics, an octave typically refers to a range of frequencies or wavelengths that spans a factor of 2. In other words,...

A telescope lens is a primary optical component of a telescope system that gathers and focuses light to form an image. It is...

1. An instrument used to determine the visual range in an environment. 2. A type of photometer that artificially reduces an...

A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light...

A small mass spectrometer, with a limited mass range, equipped with an analyzer to generate a cycloidal-path beam of the...

A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...

A flexible single- or multifiber cable having a bundle of glass fibers arranged to transmit an image.

The range of angle or solid angle values by which light may enter an optical system.

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) is a powerful analytical technique that enhances the Raman scattering signal of...

RGB stands for red, green, blue, which are the primary colors of light used in additive color mixing. The RGB color model is...

An etalon is an optical device that consists of two parallel reflecting surfaces separated by a precise and known distance....

The discernment of depth or apparent difference in distance that causes the object to stand out from its background because...

A group of single emitter laser diodes, usually arranged vertically or horizontally with respect to each other. The power...

A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of...

A series of high contrast block letters or similar objects arranged to permit the evaluation of eyesight in humans.

An OLED display formed by creating an array of OLED pixels connected by intersecting anode and cathode conductors arranged...

A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...

Also known as TEA laser. A coherent optical source with a wide wavelength range in the infrared, visible and ultraviolet...

Gram-positive bacteria are a group of bacteria that have a thick cell wall composed primarily of a substance called...

The instrument used to collect thermal radiation information on an object by scanning. It consists basically of a detector,...

A pixel, short for "picture element," is the smallest controllable element of a digital image or display. It is a...

Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...

A dichroic mirror, also known as a dichroic beamsplitter or interference filter beamsplitter, is an optical device that...

A narrow range of emitted or absorbed wavelengths.

A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...

In photonics, a lattice refers to a periodic arrangement of optical elements or structures, often on a microscopic or...

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that integrates digital information, typically in the form of computer-generated...

A camera mounted on an optical bench with an easel to hold the material to be copied. Magnification can be varied over a...

A camera equipped with angular scales in altitude and azimuth. The scale readings are imprinted on the film when an exposure...

Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal...

The frequency space between consecutive transmission peaks in the transmission spectrum of a Fabry-Perot interferometer or...

Gain-switching is a technique used in lasers to generate short pulses of light by modulating the gain of the laser medium....

A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...

An optical assembly refers to a collection of optical components that are carefully arranged and aligned to perform a...

Measures the absorption or sample transmittance over a range of specified wavelengths. Sample may be placed within the...

A collection of color samples arranged in charts according to equal visually spaced steps in Munsell hue, value and chroma.

Measurement of absorption by the gas of interest in the 2- to 6-µm range as a function of tangent height pressure. The...

A blank area (caused by insufficient inking of the paper) that falls within the range of an intended character stroke in an...

Harmonic generation refers to a nonlinear optical process in which incoming photons interact with a material and produce new...

A mid-infrared camera is a type of imaging device designed to capture images in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectral range,...

A detector-Dewar assembly typically refers to a combination of a detector and a Dewar flask used in scientific instruments,...

Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric...

A Ti:sapphire laser is a type of solid-state laser that utilizes a titanium-doped sapphire crystal as the gain medium. The...

A nanotube, also known as a nanotubule or simply a tube-like structure, is a nanoscale cylindrical structure composed of...

The minimum value of luminance for vision. The value may vary with age as well as dark adaption period. (Measured range...

The arrangement of two Porro prisms so that the inverted image formed by certain types of optical instruments is the same as...

1. A geometrical arrangement of two or more light beams for use in laser shows, object detection or other applications...

A ground-based navigation beacon that emits pulsed signals which are picked up by aircraft making an instrument (blind)...

The optical Fourier transform is a mathematical operation applied to optical signals that involves transforming a spatial...

Equipment for testing an observer's color vision. Some tests require the identification or ordering of colored samples. The...

An atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high-resolution imaging and measurement instrument used in nanotechnology, materials...

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor...

An apparatus, designed for use with a camera, that is used to rapidly open the path from lens to film, to maintain the...

An amplifying device with a wide tuning range in which an electron gun sends a beam of electrons into a slow-wave structure....

Quantum confinement refers to the phenomenon in quantum mechanics where the motion of charge carriers, such as electrons or...

A device that uses electromagnetic fields to separate electrically charged particles according to their masses. As a beam of...

A beam shaper is an optical device or system designed to modify the spatial profile or intensity distribution of a laser or...

The third dimension (depth or Z-axis) in an imaging system.

Metasurfaces are two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength-scale artificial structures, often referred to as meta-atoms or...

The prism used in a rangefinder to bend the lines of sight through the instruments into the eyepieces.

Attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy is a technique used in analytical chemistry to obtain IR spectra of samples....

A breakout cable, also known as a fan-out cable or breakout assembly, is a type of cable that combines multiple individual...

A plate made up of thousands of glass fibers arranged parallel to one another, i.e., in a coherent bundle, and fused...

A holographic grating is a type of diffraction grating that is produced using holographic recording techniques. It consists...

Histology is the branch of biology and medicine that involves the study of the microscopic structure of tissues and organs...

A computer whose architecture contains several CPU chips arranged in parallel. Often used in image processing systems.

Chip-on-board (COB) lights refer to a type of LED lighting technology where multiple LED chips are directly mounted onto a...

The term "embedded laser" typically refers to a laser device that is integrated or embedded into a larger system or...

An electron-gun system is an assembly used to generate and control a focused beam of electrons. Electron guns find...

Dichroism refers to the property of certain materials to exhibit different colors or absorbance of light depending on the...

Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the...

The lens located at the object end of a microscope tube. A wide range of objectives is available, including simple...

An aspheric lens is a type of lens whose surface profiles deviate from the traditional spherical shape. Unlike spherical...

A frequency comb is a precise and regular series of equally spaced spectral lines, or frequencies, that are generated with...

Infrared optics refer to optical components and systems designed to manipulate and control infrared (IR) light, which lies...

Whole slide imaging (WSI), also known as virtual slide microscopy or digital pathology, is a technology that involves the...

A type of interferometer in which two coils of optical fiber are arranged so that light from a single source travels...

Terahertz (THz) refers to a unit of frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, denoting waves with frequencies between 0.1...

Process for growth of solar cells that results in rectangular shapes consisting of many interconnected cells in a series or...

That invisible region of the spectrum just beyond the violet end of the visible region. Wavelengths range from 1 to 400 nm.

The number of electrons that can share a principal quantum number by preventing identity between any two electrons' four...

An ultrafast pulsed laser is a type of laser that emits extremely short pulses of light with durations typically on the...

A reticle, also known as a reticule or graticule, is a pattern or set of markings placed in the focal plane of an optical...

Hyperspectral imaging is an advanced imaging technique that captures and processes information from across the...

An astronomical telescope is a type of optical instrument designed to gather and magnify light from distant celestial...

An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...

The soft x-rays used in the industrial radiography of materials having too small a range of densities to produce an image...

A crystal, glass, or quartz slicing and cutting machine is a specialized piece of equipment used in the manufacturing...

A grating that serves to provide higher resolution and dispersion than the average grating, and still has a greater free...

The range of frequencies that will pass through a filter or other device. Synonymous with passband.

A critical image parameter in applications where object position may change dynamically relative to the imager; this is a...

Mie scattering, named after the German physicist Gustav Mie, refers to the scattering of electromagnetic radiation (such as...

A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers...

A fiber-coupled LED (light-emitting diode) refers to an LED device that is optically coupled to an optical fiber for the...

A furnace, generally electrically heated, with a control system capable of following a cam by which the temperature can be...

An atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS) is an analytical instrument used to determine the concentration of specific chemical...

A fiber optic imaging bundle is a specialized optical device composed of multiple optical fibers bundled together. Each...

A spectral signature, in the context of remote sensing and spectroscopy, refers to the unique pattern or characteristic...

A type of birefringent filter, similar in principle to the Lyot filter, consisting of many identical birefringent elements,...

In colorimetry, the phenomenon in which spectrally different radiations produce the same color sensation for a given...

In an optical rangefinder, the system of wedges that rotate in opposite directions to aid in the detection of deviation in...

Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...

A rangefinder used to determine the height or altitude of aerial targets by means of optical triangulation. The device...

The unwanted and unpredictable fluctuations that distort a received signal and hence tend to obscure the desired message....

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot onboard. UAVs are remotely...

A wide-field multiobject spectroscopy system used in astronomy, in which a bundle of low-loss optical fibers positioned on...

A small instrument containing a picture support and a pair of magnifying lenses so arranged that the left eye sees only the...

Two or more lenses arranged to act in conjunction with one another.

A semiconductor device with the property of conducting current more easily in one direction than the other. It has two...

Liquid crystals are a state of matter that exhibits properties intermediate between those of conventional liquids and solid...

A laser crystal, also known as an active medium or gain medium, is a solid-state material used in the construction of...

In image processing, the range of available gray levels. In an 8-bit system, the gray scale contains values from 0 to 255.

An instrument used to measure the light from a scene to be photographed and to indicate the camera lens and shutter settings...

A microlens array is a grid-like structure composed of numerous small lenses, typically arranged in a regular pattern. Each...

Two simple meniscus lenses arranged symmetrically on either side of the aperture stop, providing reduced coma, lateral color...

Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the...

Epitaxial equipment refers to a set of specialized tools and systems used in the process of epitaxy, which is the growth of...

A passive coupler that distributes signals from one or several inputs among a larger number of output waveguides arranged...

Spectral flow cytometry is an advanced flow cytometry technique that expands the capabilities of traditional flow cytometry...

A dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) refers to a type of optical fiber designed to minimize the effects of chromatic dispersion,...

Also known as a gray body; a nonselective radiator is a thermal radiator that has a constant spectral emissivity with...

Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the...

Optical cements and adhesives are specialized materials used in the assembly and bonding of optical components in optical...

A liquid crystal light valve (LCLV), also known as a spatial light modulator (SLM), is an optical device that modulates the...

A digital camera is a device that captures and records still images or video in digital format. Unlike traditional film...

A computer-generated, phase-and-amplitude, off-axis hologram made by a multi-exposure technique that uses three computer...

1. An optical distance finder that depends on triangulation of two convergent beams on an object from disparate view points....

Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term...

A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance, which is a phenomenon that occurs when an external force or...

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical...

An APD detector, or avalanche photodiode detector, is a type of photodetector used to detect light or optical signals by...

An instrument designed to measure the refractive power and range of accommodation of the eye. See ophthalmic instruments.

Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to...

A device used in electron microscopes and particle accelerators to focus electron beams by the arrangement of four...

An eyepiece having a special prism arrangement linked to a micrometer screw to allow reading of the angular relations...

A bundle of optical fibers arranged randomly for the purpose of transmitting energy, not an image.

Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...

A photon sieve is an optical device used in the field of optics and imaging. It's designed to focus and shape light,...

A mappable surface feature arranged in straight or curved lines that is distinguished from surrounding surfaces and is...

An aspheric mirror is an optical mirror surface that deviates from the shape of a perfect sphere, having a non-spherical...

In the region of a Gaussian beam focus by a diffraction-limited lens, it is the axial distance from the point of minimum...

A halogen lamp, also known as a tungsten halogen, quartz-halogen, or quartz iodine lamp, is an incandescent lamp that uses a...

The term half bandwidth (HBW) generally refers to the width of a spectral band or frequency range at half of its maximum...

A long-pass filter is an optical filter that allows longer wavelengths of light to pass through while blocking or...

Low Earth orbit (LEO) refers to a region in space that is relatively close to Earth's surface, typically characterized by...

A small object that behaves as a whole unit or entity in terms of it's transport and it's properties, as opposed to an...

The series of processes used to identify and evaluate crystal structure by using crystalline solids to diffract x-rays. In...

Retroreflection is a phenomenon in optics where light is reflected back toward its source, typically in a direction nearly...

A unit of measurement in a rangefinder corresponding to 12 s of arc in the apparent field.

A rangefinder on a camera that is integrated with the focusing mechanism so that when an object's range is determined, the...

The electrostatic field acting locally within a crystal as a result of the microscopic arrangement of atoms and ions in the...

Q-switched operation, or q-switching, is a technique used in lasers to produce short and intense pulses of light. The term...

An absorption peak refers to a sharp increase or spike in the absorption of electromagnetic radiation at a particular...

A fiber optic preform is a cylindrical glass rod or tube used as the starting material for manufacturing optical fibers. It...

Metal used in components of the crystalline semiconductor alloys indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs), indium gallium arsenide...

Chirality is a property of certain molecules and objects in which they are non-superimposable on their mirror images. In...

Multispectral imaging is a technique that involves capturing and analyzing images at multiple discrete spectral bands within...

Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main...

A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....

Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or...

A graduated range of stimuli perceived as having equivalent differences of brightness.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive neuroimaging technique that measures changes in hemoglobin...

An arranged series of coils, magnets or electromagnets disposed in such a way that the resulting magnetic fields generate a...

For a Fabry-Perot interferometer or etalon, a value for the transmission bandwidth which can be calculated as the ratio of...

A Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) is a state of matter that forms at temperatures close to absolute zero. It is named after...

Subsurface linear arrangement of elements of rock that is not mappable; lineation is a one-dimensional characteristic.

A small erect-image telescope for use as a sighting device on a rifle. The chief requirement is a long eye relief to avoid...

Nd:YAG laser refers to a solid-state laser that utilizes neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:Y3Al5O12) as the gain...

Laser optics refers to a broad category of optical components and systems designed for manipulating and controlling laser...

A type of birefringent polarizing prism that transmits the extraordinary ray and removes the ordinary ray through total...

A group of photosensors arranged in a grid-like pattern covering the entire field of view, enabling them to record it all at...

A lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a miniaturized device that integrates various laboratory functions and capabilities onto a single,...

In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....

A spectrograph having glass as its refracting component and used in cases where speed and high dispersion are not required....

The range of image distances that corresponds to the range of object distances covered by the depth of field.

In the context of imaging, particularly digital imaging and printing, "orange peel" refers to a texture or visual distortion...

A method of measuring distance by recording a single scene from two points of perspective. Surveying instruments can be...

An optical instrument used to determine the distance to a target being viewed. Two similar optical systems view the target...

A device that permits only electrons within a narrow velocity range to pass through it, while rejecting those above and...

Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded...

An InGaAs (indium gallium arsenide) camera is a type of imaging device that utilizes InGaAs sensors to capture images in the...

An antireflection coating (AR coating) is a thin film or coating applied to optical surfaces, such as lenses or windows, to...

A fiber optic sensor is a device that uses optical fibers to detect and measure physical, chemical, biological, or...

A fiber-coupled photoconductive antenna (FCPA) is a type of optoelectronic device that combines a photoconductive antenna...

Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the...

Laser marking is a process in which a laser beam is used to mark or engrave a surface by altering its properties or...

Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...

An EMCCD (electron-multiplying charge-coupled device) camera is a type of scientific camera specifically designed for...

A bundle of filaments of optical glass or other transparent materials that transmit only light, not optical images. The...

In image processing, machine vision and television, discrete brightness values quantized for a group of pixels. They can...

A scintillation crystal, also known simply as a scintillator, is a material that emits light when it interacts with ionizing...

Phototoxicity refers to the harmful effects caused by exposure to light, particularly intense or ultraviolet (UV) light, on...

The product of the actual base or baseline of a rangefinder or heightfinder, and the power or magnification of the...

Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce...

An excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that emits short pulses of light in the ultraviolet spectrum. The term...

The detection and analysis of naturally formed extraterrestrial electromagnetic radiation within the radio frequency range...

Noise over a specified frequency range, in which the spectral density is proportional to the frequency instead of being...

A laser skin-resurfacing method that creates microscopic thermal wounds referred to as microscopic treatment zones (MTZs),...

Ultrasonic refers to sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing, typically above...

Digital signal processing (DSP) refers to the manipulation and analysis of signals, which are representations of physical...

A camera that uses a rotating mirror to project sequential images onto lenses that are arranged in an arc. The reflected...

Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer...

A synchrotron is a type of particle accelerator that uses magnetic fields to steer charged particles, typically electrons or...

An impurity-doped silicon detector array sensitive to long infrared wavelengths, installed in optical collecting systems...

An endoscope is a medical device used for visualizing and examining the interior of hollow organs, body cavities, or...

A display format consisting of small light-emitting elements arranged as a two-dimensional array. Various elements are...

A CubeSat is a type of miniaturized satellite characterized by its standardized size and modular design. CubeSats are...

Germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) refers to a specific range of UV radiation that has disinfectant properties capable of killing...

Positioning generally refers to the determination or identification of the location or placement of an object, person, or...

An electrowetting display (EWD) is a type of electronic display technology that utilizes the principles of electrowetting to...

Characterizes the significant solar radiation at the surface of the earth, so named because its spectral range extends only...

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...

Class of organic dyes that emit coherent radiation over a wide spectral range.

The frequency domain is a concept used in signal processing and analysis to represent signals and data in terms of their...

A plane-parallel interferometer that yields extremely high contrast over a wide range of finesse values without...

Any arrangement of a bundle of optical fibers that alters the shape of the image. For example, by systematic regulation of...

Instruments used for measuring angles and occasionally lengths on the ground. The principal surveying instruments are the...

Remote sensing is a method of data collection and observation where information about objects, areas, or phenomena on...

A means of determining a prism's index of refraction by placing the prism so that its emergent face is perpendicular to the...

An instrument that contains a spectrograph with a grating in which an array of slits, in place of a photographic plate, is...

A well plate, also known as a microplate or microtiter plate, is a flat plate with multiple small wells or depressions...

An event-based image sensor, also known as a dynamic vision sensor (DVS), is a type of digital imaging device designed to...

The heat-treating method in which the index of refraction of glass is fixed near or at its maximum value by holding the...

The internet of things (IoT) refers to a network of interconnected physical devices, vehicles, appliances, and other objects...

A technique in which a beam of x-rays is directed against a crystal, the atoms of which, because of their lattice...

A metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiode is a type of photodetector that consists of metal electrodes on a semiconductor...

A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light...

A photomultiplier tube (PMT) is a highly sensitive vacuum tube that detects and amplifies low levels of light. It is widely...

A hydrogel is a three-dimensional network of polymer chains that are hydrophilic, meaning they have a strong affinity for...

Monolithic self-scanning linear image sensor array for multichannel spectroscopy with a spectral range of from 200 to 1000...

A terahertz spectrometer is a scientific instrument used to measure and analyze the properties of materials in the terahertz...

Any form of laser; e.g., a dye laser, having an output that can be adjusted over a wide range of wavelengths. Normally the...

A method of measuring total hemispherical emissivity of the plane surface of a solid that consists of thermally isolating a...

Radiation from the sun that is made up of a very wide range of wavelengths, from the long infrared to the short ultraviolet...

A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic...

An aptamer is a short, single-stranded DNA or RNA molecule that can bind to a specific target molecule with high affinity...

A dichroic coating, also known as a dichroic filter or dichroic mirror, is an optical coating designed to selectively...

A framework or latticework having an even arrangement of rods, or any other long narrow objects with interstices between...

In spectroscopy, the false images arranged symmetrically on both sides of the true line and caused by irregularities in the...

A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital...

A high-speed motion camera, also known as a high-speed camera or slow-motion camera, is a specialized imaging device...

The positioning of two Nicol prisms so that their axes are at right angles to each other. With this arrangement, light...

An emission spectrum is a graphical representation or a characteristic pattern of the wavelengths or frequencies of light...

The detection and analysis of the relative response of a material to light over the range of wavelengths.

1. The term used to describe any of the many instruments used to remotely record physical dimensions, such as strain,...

A broadband continuum resonator that confines a wide range of wavelengths. From the optical confinement a single wavelength...

A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images...

The central wavelength range of a transmitter based on the worst-case scenarios of temperature, manufacturing and other...

A device that determines the lens shape in the cutting or edging phase of fabrication. It also is used to denote the...

Device which measures the index of refraction of glass as well as the dispersion over visible range.

A neutral density filter that, when placed in front of the iris of a lens, increases the f-stop range.

High dynamic range (HDR) refers to a technology that allows for a broader and more dynamic range of luminosity in visual...

A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In...

A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated...

A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used...

An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...

A lens system made up of two sets of similar lenses, each of which compensates for many of the aberrations produced by the...

A galvanometric scanner, also known as a galvanometer scanner or galvo scanner, is a type of optical scanning device used to...

Also known as a white-light interferometer. Measures surface texture and shape from nanometer-scale roughness to...

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...

An automatic scanning instrument that is used to study a substance's fluorescence over a wide range of wavelengths. It...

Laser sintering is an additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing technology that involves using a laser to selectively fuse...

Dispersion that occurs when the medium's index of refraction decreases as the frequency of the propagating light increases....

The line that divides the two half-images in a coincidence rangefinder. The two halves of the images formed by the two...

A spectrophotometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the intensity of light at various wavelengths in the...

Optical design software refers to specialized computer programs used by optical engineers, physicists, and designers to...

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a non-invasive analytical technique that uses the near-infrared region of the...

A calcium indicator is a molecule that is sensitive to changes in calcium ion (Ca2+) concentrations in biological systems....

1. The range of frequencies or wavelengths over which radiations are absorbed or emitted in a transition between a specific...

A solid with a structure that exhibits a basically symmetrical and geometrical arrangement. A crystal may already possess...

An acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. Predecessor to the laser, the maser or...

A broadband filter is an electronic or electromagnetic device designed to pass a range of frequencies or signals within a...

A type of copying camera in which the object is placed on a horizontal easel and photographed by a horizontal camera above...

A line-scan camera, also known as a line-scan image sensor or linear array camera, is a type of digital camera designed to...

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a compound made up of gallium (Ga) and nitrogen (N). It is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material...

A series of solar cells arranged to collect solar radiation and to generate a given amount of electrical energy.

Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) is a mechanism describing the transfer of energy between two closely spaced...

1. In a polished surface, concentric waves that appear as zones in Newton's rings when a test glass is applied. 2. An...

A scientific CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) camera is a type of digital camera specifically designed for...

A compound prism consisting of an assembly of small prisms cemented together that is used in a coincidence rangefinder to...

A scanning device used to cyclically tune through a given frequency range to determine the amplitude-frequency distribution...

Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a...

A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...

A camera used to reduce originals onto film for easy storage. There are two basic types: one in which the film is fixed...

The Weissenberg method, named after the German physicist Karl Weissenberg, is a technique used in x-ray crystallography for...

A YAG crystal refers to a solid-state crystal made of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), which is a synthetic crystalline...

CoaXPress (CoaXPress or CXP) is a standardized digital interface and communication protocol used primarily in machine vision...

3D Laser Triangulation - A technology that allows sensors to probe the surroundings. Laser triangulation systems have an...

Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...

A quarter- or half-wave retarder made from two plates of quartz, mica or polymer with their fast axes crossed; the...

A fluorophore is a molecule or a portion of a molecule that has the ability to emit light upon excitation by an external...

A laser with a gain medium consisting of an organic dye, which is carbon-based. The dye is mixed with a solvent, allowing...

Optical elements arranged with no spaces between, so that the light travels only through glass, not air.

Videography refers to the process of capturing moving images and recording them in a digital format. It involves the use of...

A laser rangefinder is a device that uses laser technology to measure the distance between the device and a target. It...

GigE, short for gigabit Ethernet, refers to a standard for high-speed Ethernet communication, capable of transmitting data...

Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet radiation with shorter wavelengths than those of visible...

An optical clock is a highly precise and advanced timekeeping device that relies on the oscillations of electromagnetic...

The field of view (FOV) refers to the extent of the observable world or the visible area that can be seen at any given...

The separation between the exit pupils of a binocular instrument. This usually is adjustable so that it can be set equal to...

A flowmeter is a device used to measure the flow rate or quantity of a fluid passing through a particular point in a system....

Attosecond photonics sources refer to devices or systems that generate extremely short pulses of light on the order of...

A disc whose surface contains recorded digital data at high-packing densities arranged in concentric rings. The data,...

Also known as corner-cube reflector or retrodirective reflector. Three reflecting surfaces, perpendicular to each other,...

Fiber optic cable in which the arrangement of fibers within the bundle has been made random so that output light will be...

Optical glass that possesses a refractive index equal to or less than 1.5, and an Abbe number that ranges from 62 to about...

A thick meniscus lens arranged concentric with the center of curvature of a spherical mirror to produce an image free of...

A phase-modulated sensor is a type of sensor that uses modulation of the phase of a signal to measure changes in a physical...

Fraction absorption over a specified range of wavelengths.

The study of the arrangement of atoms in a crystal by means of x-rays.

In optics, degreasers or ultrasonic arrangements used for removing pitch, cement or polishing material from lenses during...

A prism is a geometric optical element with flat, polished surfaces that refract light. It is typically a solid, transparent...

An acronym for communications intelligence, referring to the collection of communications signals in the VHF and UHF...

Freeform mirrors refer to reflective optical components that deviate from traditional symmetric or rotationally symmetric...

A molded lens is an optical lens manufactured using a molding process, typically involving the shaping of a material, such...

An intensified charge-coupled device (ICCD) camera is an advanced imaging device that combines the capabilities of both an...

The range of frequencies over which a particular instrument is designed to function within specified limits. See also fiber...

The frequency range for radio and television transmission.

Machine vision lighting refers to the use of specific lighting techniques and equipment in the field of machine vision,...

Optical fiber optic switches are devices used in optical fiber communication systems to selectively route optical signals...

The maximum to minimum range of temperature, pressure, humidity, vibration and biological conditions under which an optical...

A filter that suppresses a given range of frequencies, transmitting only those above and below that band. Also called...

A metal, alloy or compound that loses its electrical resistance at temperatures below a certain transition temperature...

An optical wedge of very small angles that admits light while sealing out moisture and dirt and that may be rotated to...

Broadband dielectric mirrors, also known as broadband mirrors, are optical coatings designed to efficiently reflect or...

An interferometer formed by two similar concave spherical mirrors arranged with the center of one sphere on the other...

A reflecting prism that is rhomboidal in shape. It has two parallel transmitting faces, and two parallel reflecting faces;...

An optical material used in place of crown glass to produce lenses with extraordinary correction of chromatic aberrations....

Nanophotonics is a branch of science and technology that explores the behavior of light on the nanometer scale, typically at...

Micro-robotics refers to the field of robotics that involves the design, development, and application of miniature robotic...

A photographic enlarger with a fixed negative plane and a fixed paper plane, often using a roll of paper that is advanced...

Metrology is the science and practice of measurement. It encompasses the theoretical and practical aspects of measurement,...

A lens made up of a number of lens elements arranged into two or more groups.

In semiconductor physics and materials science, the term "III-V materials" refers to compounds composed of elements from...

A device used to measure directional reflectance, with light collection restricted to a narrow range of angles of which the...

Sapphire refers to a crystalline form of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) that is used in various optical and photonic applications...

The term sometimes used to describe the sequential arrangement of components in a video system -- from transmitter to...

The angular difference in the direction of an object as seen from two points of observation. The angle subtended at the...

A lock-in amplifier is a specialized electronic instrument used to extract and measure small signals embedded in noise or...

A technique for improving the structure density of thin-film coatings by bombarding the growing film with accelerated ions...

Additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, is a manufacturing process that involves creating three-dimensional...

A plane mirror mounted on a polar axis that lies parallel to the plane of the mirror. When the mirror is rotated once in 48...

A corner reflector that provides an increase in the range of angles over which it may be used.

Fusion ignition refers to the point in a controlled nuclear fusion reaction where the energy released by the fusion...

An objective measure of an object's brightness that is derived from the ratio of the luminance of its lightest section to...

An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms,...

A lens with internally adjustable elements to produce a range of focal lengths. Unlike a true zoom lens, a multifocal lens...

In local area networking, arrangement of the satellite nodes around a central node through which all routing of network data...

A time-to-amplitude converter (TAC) is an electronic circuit that converts a time interval between two events into an...

A double meniscus system in which two achromatized meniscus lenses are arranged symmetrically on either side of the aperture...

Parallel scanning refers to a method of acquiring data or images simultaneously from multiple sources or in parallel, rather...

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties...

A display that allows the observation and measurement of the altitude and range of airborne objects.

Dispersion refers to the phenomenon where different wavelengths (colors) of light travel at different speeds when passing...

The state of a liquid crystal in which the molecules are arranged in layers with their long axes in the plane of each layer....

The entire range of colors a specific color model can produce, represented as a three-dimensional solid.

Certain color centers in the alkali halides have been optically pumped to produce efficient tunable pulsed and...

A device consisting of a disc with a spiral arrangement of holes that is used to convert visible patterns into electrical...

High harmonic generation (HHG) refers to a nonlinear optical process in which intense laser light interacts with a gaseous...

A rangefinder similar to a pair of binoculars with a long base, a dot or other wander mark provided in each eyepiece field,...

A silicon photodiode is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It is a type of photodetector...

Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter...

An inorganic compound, yellow to orange in color, that fluoresces strongly enough when bombarded by a high-current-density...

Rare earth dopants refer to elements from the lanthanide series, also known as rare earth elements, that are intentionally...

Supercontinuum refers to a broad spectrum of light that spans a wide range of wavelengths, typically from the visible to the...

The range of materials that, unlike glass, may be used in the infrared. Water-soluble salts, such as cesium iodide, and...

A laser with output over a wide range of wavelengths spanning the far-infrared region of the spectrum (30 to 1000 µm);...

An optical lens manufactured to control the transmission of light over a specified wavelength range. Low absorption lenses...

A color center, in the context of materials science and condensed matter physics, refers to a specific type of...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small, single-stranded RNA molecules, typically consisting of about 19 to 24 nucleotides,...

A spectrograph used to detect radiation in the range of the ultraviolet in the electromagnetic spectrum. It is made up of...

Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level....

The value of the expanse of b-particles in an absorber, evaluated by visual examination of breaks in the absorption curve.

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...

A microchannel plate (MCP) is a specialized electron multiplier device used in various applications such as particle...

A microdisplay is a miniature electronic display technology that is designed to project visual information onto a small...

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of...

The random noise having a spectral density that is substantially independent of the frequency over a specified frequency...

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...

A two-lens arrangement intended to image light into a microscope slide sample. The primary aberrations present are red and...

A near-infrared (NIR) spectrometer is an analytical instrument used to measure the absorption, transmission, or reflection...

A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....

The field of view seen through some types of coincidence rangefinders. It is formed by the juxtaposition of opposite halves...

An alphanumeric display formed by a layer of liquid crystal material sandwiched between two sheets of glass; a transparent...

A coating made up of many layers of material having alternating high and low refractive index. In this way, it is possible...

A femtosecond laser is a type of laser that emits ultrashort pulses of light with durations on the order of femtoseconds,...

Calorimetry is a branch of science that involves the measurement of heat flow in physical or chemical processes. It...

A linear image sensor is a type of solid-state electronic device used to capture and convert light into electrical signals....

Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically...

A combination of components arranged so as to perform at least one function.

The distance, on either side of the object plane focused on, through which satisfactory image definition can be obtained....

A holographic camera, also known as a holographic imaging system or holographic recorder, is a specialized device used to...

MWIR stands for mid-wave infrared, referring to a specific range of wavelengths within the infrared spectrum. Infrared...

An instrument that uses optical filtration in order to measure the transmittance for a discrete range or specific number of...

A retroreflector is an optical device or structure that reflects incident light or electromagnetic waves back to their...

Structural color refers to coloration in materials that is not caused by pigments or dyes but is instead a result of the...

Optical glass refers to a type of glass specifically engineered and manufactured for use in optical components and systems,...

Lens testing equipment refers to a range of specialized tools and instruments used to evaluate the optical performance,...

The total range of wavelengths, extending from the shortest to the longest wavelength or conversely, that can be generated...

Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and...

A spectrophotometer designed for use in the 200- to 380-nm range of the electromagnetic spectrum and equipped with a...

Swept-source optical coherence tomography is an imaging technique used in medical diagnostics, particularly in...

A phonon is a quantum of vibrational energy associated with the periodic motion of atoms or molecules in a crystalline...

A chart formed by a spectrograph; the record of the spectral range. See spectrograph.

A scintillation detector is a radiation detection device that utilizes scintillation crystals to detect and measure ionizing...

Structured illumination microscopy (SIM) is an advanced optical imaging technique used in microscopy to enhance the...

The technology of generating and harnessing light and other forms of radiant energy whose quantum unit is the photon. The...

Horizontal concentrations that comprise the dominant factor in atmospheric gradient correction. The range bias near due...

Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation...

A point cloud is a set of data points in a three-dimensional coordinate system, where each point represents a specific...

Scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (sCMOS) refers to a type of image sensor technology specifically designed...

Rolling shutter artifacts are distortions or visual anomalies that can occur in images or videos captured by cameras with...

A CCD device for sensing longer wavelengths, such as NIR and IR, that has a deeper depletion region than would be necessary...

The term photochemical pertains to chemical processes or reactions that are initiated or influenced by the absorption of...

Laser ablation is a process that involves the removal or erosion of material from a target surface using laser energy. This...

A hyperspectral imaging camera is a sophisticated imaging device capable of capturing and processing data across a wide...

A graphic representation of a distribution function such as frequency by means of rectangles whose widths represent the...

A polygonal mirror, also known as a multifaceted mirror or facet mirror, is a type of optical component used in various...

Calculation of the amount of energy extracted from a light beam regardless of its wide range resolution.

A cloud chamber designed to maintain the gas within it at a high pressure as a means of reducing the range of the...