Now Streaming: Catch the Raman Spectroscopy Summit On-Demand
Search
Menu
Lumencor Inc. - Power of Light 4-24 LB
semiconductor Dictionary Terms

optoelectronic integrated circuit
A monolithic device containing both photonic and electronic sources, detectors, modulators, etc., on a single semiconductor...
epitaxy
A well controlled thin films technique for growing films with good crystal structure in ultra high vacuum environments at...
PIN photodiode
A PIN photodiode is a type of photodetector or semiconductor device used to convert light signals into electrical signals....
image enhancement laser
A semiconductor platelet laser that emits a coherent image by means of plane optical pumping over the platelet surface, and...
infrared thermistor
A thermistor that uses a semiconductor that is sensitive to infrared radiation to measure the radiation's intensity.
CCD image sensor
A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images...
photon drag effect
The induction of an electric field in a semiconductor by an incident laser beam. The technique has rapid response time at...
custom lapping and polishing services
Custom lapping and polishing services involve specialized processes used to improve the surface finish and dimensional...
Peltier cooler
A Peltier cooler, also known as a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) or thermoelectric module, is a solid-state device that uses...
germanium crystal
Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor...
N-type material
A quadrivalent semiconductor material, with electrons as the majority charge carriers, that is formed by doping with donor...
photodiffusion effect
The potential difference between two areas of a semiconductor when one is exposed to light.
bipolar
Refers to transistors in which the working current flows through two types of semiconductor material: N- and P-type. In...
chalcogenide
Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur...
P-type material
A semiconductor material in which the dopants create holes as the majority charge carrier. It is formed by doping with...
InGaAs photodiode
An InGaAs photodiode refers to a photodetector device that is constructed using a semiconductor material composed of a...
metasurfaces
Metasurfaces are two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength-scale artificial structures, often referred to as meta-atoms or...
fiber optic spectrometer
A fiber optic spectrometer is a device used for measuring the spectral content of light. It utilizes optical fibers to...
unijunction transistor
A three-terminal semiconductor having only one PN junction and a stable, open-circuit, negative-resistance property.
grown-junction photocell
A photodiode that has been designed so that the bar of semiconductor material has a PN junction perpendicular to its length...
polariton
A polariton is a quasiparticle resulting from the strong coupling between photons (light particles) and certain types of...
recombination radiation
The radiation emitted in semiconductors when electrons in the conduction band recombine with holes in the valence band. If...
automated optical inspection
Automated optical inspection (AOI) is a technology used in manufacturing processes, particularly in electronics, to...
laser diode module
A laser diode module is a compact device that incorporates a laser diode, optics, and often other components into a single...
lensless microscopy
Lensless microscopy, also known as computational or holographic microscopy, is an imaging technique that captures and...
thin-film semiconductor
A semiconductor formed by applying a particular single-crystal layer to the specific insulator.
III-V material
In semiconductor physics and materials science, the term "III-V materials" refers to compounds composed of elements from...
anomalous photoconductivity
A spectral phenomenon in which the degree of the photoresponse of an illuminated semiconductor is determined by the...
tellurium
The material favored for study of interaction of high-acoustic intensities with free carriers. Tellurium is the...
nonlinear optical materials
Nonlinear optical materials are substances that exhibit optical properties that are not linearly proportional to the...
substrate
A substrate refers to a material or surface upon which another material or process is applied or deposited. In various...
excimer laser
An excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that emits short pulses of light in the ultraviolet spectrum. The term...
photoconductive antenna
Photoconductive antenna (PCA) is a semiconductor element that generates or detects high-frequency electromagnetic signals....
fiber laser
A fiber laser is a type of laser in which the active gain medium is an optical fiber doped with rare-earth ions such as...
junction diode
A semiconductor device with the property of conducting current more easily in one direction than the other. It has two...
doping
In the context of materials science and semiconductor physics, doping refers to the intentional introduction of impurities...
thermophotovoltaic
Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) refers to a technology that converts heat energy into electricity using the principles of...
die bonding
Die bonding is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics assembly, where a semiconductor die or...
single-photon avalanche diode
A single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) is a specialized type of photodetector designed to detect extremely weak optical...
epitaxial deposition
Epitaxial deposition is a process used in semiconductor manufacturing and materials science to grow a thin crystalline...
monitor current
In a laser diode, the photocurrent produced by a photodiode that detects the emission from the rear facet of the...
charge-injection device
A charge-injection device (CID) refers to a class of devices that manipulate and detect electrical charge within a...
compound semiconductor
A semiconductor made up of two or more elements, in contrast to those composed of a single element such as germanium or...
CMOS camera
A CMOS camera refers to an imaging device that employs a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to...
distributed feedback laser
A distributed feedback laser (DFB laser) is a type of semiconductor laser diode designed to emit coherent, narrow-bandwidth...
homojunction
A junction between semiconductors that differ in their doping level conductivities but not in their atomic or alloy...
PN-junction luminescence
Discharge that results when a doped semiconductor crystal with a PN junction is charged with a low-voltage direct current....
quantum dots
A quantum dot is a nanoscale semiconductor structure, typically composed of materials like cadmium selenide or indium...
indium gallium arsenide camera
An InGaAs (indium gallium arsenide) camera is a type of imaging device that utilizes InGaAs sensors to capture images in the...
indium antimonide
A semiconductor material that is used as an infrared detector for light up to 5 µm in wavelength.
deep ultraviolet
Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the...
edge-emitting LED
An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the...
spin-flip Raman laser
A semiconductor laser that operates in the infrared and that is pumped with strong pulses of radiation from a second laser....
scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
Scientific complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (sCMOS) refers to a type of image sensor technology specifically designed...
light-activated silicon-controlled rectifier
A PN-PN device with incident light taking the place of gate current; three of the four semiconductor regions are available...
photonic integrated circuit
A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) is a compact and integrated device that incorporates multiple photonic components and...
varactor
A semiconductor diode that exhibits change in capacitance with a change in applied voltage; used as a voltage-variable...
accelerometer
An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms,...
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...
machine vision system
A machine vision system is an integrated combination of hardware and software components designed to capture, process, and...
GaN distributed feedback lasers
GaN (Gallium Nitride) distributed feedback (DFB) lasers refer to a specific type of semiconductor laser based on Gallium...
blue diode laser
A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic...
piezoelectric motion systems
Piezoelectric motion systems are mechanical systems that utilize piezoelectric materials to generate controlled motion or...
transistor
An electronic device consisting of a semiconductor material, generally germanium or silicon, and used for rectification,...
London equations
The partial differential equations for the spatial and time dependence of electric and magnetic fields inside a...
epitaxial
Epitaxial refers to the growth of a crystalline layer on a crystalline substrate in such a way that the orientation of the...
diode laser
A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light....
dBm
Decibels referenced to one milliwatt; often used to specify power ratings for semiconductor diode lasers.
vertical external cavity surface-emitting laser
A laser that has a surface-emitting semiconductor gain element coupled to an external mirror designed to complete the laser...
extreme ultraviolet
Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) refers to a specific range of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum....
Franz-Keldysh effect
Observed lengthening in wavelengths of the optical absorption edge of a semiconductor with the application of an electric...
ultraviolet microscopy
The study and photographing of microscope specimens in ultraviolet light; using an optical microscope containing fluorite...
semiconductor
A semiconductor is a type of material that has electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. In...
diode-pumped solid-state laser
A diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) is a type of laser system that uses semiconductor diode lasers to pump energy into...
laser detector
Device that operates by interaction of incident radiation with semiconductor based material in order to produce an...
microbubble resonator
A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It...
silicon photodiode
A silicon photodiode is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It is a type of photodetector...
Fermi-Dirac function
The mathematical expression of the probability of any given state of energy being occupied when a semiconductor is in...
conduction band
A partially filled or empty energy band through which electrons can move easily. The material can therefore carry an...
indium phosphide
Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the...
solid-state lamp
An electroluminescent semiconductor that emits low intensity radiation in the green or red regions. Used as an indicator...
lithography
Lithography is a key process used in microfabrication and semiconductor manufacturing to create intricate patterns on the...
optical bistability
The phenomenon that can render an optical resonator the equivalent of a semiconductor flip-flop. A bistable device will...
P-type conductivity
In a semiconductor, the state created by the addition of a dopant that creates excess holes.
infrared-emitting diode
A semiconductor device with a semiconductor junction in which infrared radiant flux is nonthermally produced when a current...
GaN-based LEDs
Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric...
annealing
The process of heating and slowly cooling a solid material, like glass or metal, to stabilize its thermal, electrical or...
GRIN lens
A GRIN (gradient index) lens is a type of optical lens that utilizes a gradient in refractive index across its volume rather...
germanium
A crystalline semiconductor material that transmits in the infrared.
linear positioning stage
A linear positioning stage, also known as a linear stage or translation stage, is a precision mechanical device used to...
line-scan camera
A line-scan camera, also known as a line-scan image sensor or linear array camera, is a type of digital camera designed to...
Zener diode
A type of semiconductor diode used in voltage-limiting circuits; when voltage reaches a certain value, the device becomes a...
reticle
An optical element located at an image plane, containing a pattern that assists in pointing an instrument or measuring...
electron-beam lithography system
An electron-beam lithography (EBL) system is a sophisticated nanofabrication tool used in the semiconductor industry and...
integration time
Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a...
ion-beam sputtering
Ion-beam sputtering (IBS) is a physical vapor deposition (PVD) technique used for depositing thin films onto substrates. It...
electron storage ring
An advanced magnetic device used in x-ray lithography to beam x-rays onto the surface of silicon wafers used for...
nanopositioning
Nanopositioning refers to the precise and controlled movement or manipulation of objects or components at the nanometer...
lattice
In photonics, a lattice refers to a periodic arrangement of optical elements or structures, often on a microscopic or...
electron device
Any device in which the passage of electrons through a vacuum, gas or semiconductor is the principal means of conduction.
carrier injection
Carrier injection refers to the process of introducing charge carriers (either electrons or holes) into a semiconductor...
complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) refers to a technology used in the fabrication of integrated circuits,...
band-to-band photoluminescence
The emission of a photon by the return of an excited carrier from the conduction band to the valence band of a semiconductor...
infrared light source
An infrared light source is a device that emits light in the infrared spectrum, which lies beyond the visible spectrum of...
photodischarge spectroscopy
A spectroscopic process that detects and analyzes the discharge from an extrinsic surface with less than bandgap light. This...
optical switching
Optical switching refers to the process of controlling the routing or transmission of optical signals within a network using...
liquid crystal on silicon
Liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) is a display technology that combines liquid crystal materials with silicon-based...
optoelectronics
Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light...
unipolar
Refers to the transistors in which the working current flows through only one type of semiconductor material, either P-type...
quantum dot light-emitting diode
QLED stands for quantum dot light-emitting diode. QLED is a display technology that utilizes quantum dots, which are...
platinum silicide
A semiconductor material used in photodetectors, sensitive in the infrared up to 5 µm.
quantum confinement
Quantum confinement refers to the phenomenon in quantum mechanics where the motion of charge carriers, such as electrons or...
infrared light-emitting diode
An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current...
three-five
Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element that has three valence electrons with one or more that...
gallium antimonide
A binary semiconductor compound used as a substrate or active layer for diode lasers.
photolithography
Photolithography is a key process in the manufacturing of semiconductor devices, integrated circuits, and...
optical materials
Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the...
microring resonator
A microring resonator is a compact optical device that utilizes the resonant behavior of light within a small ring-shaped...
nanoLED
An LED (light-emitting diode) is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...
detector array
A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format....
gain-switching
Gain-switching is a technique used in lasers to generate short pulses of light by modulating the gain of the laser medium....
two-six
Referring to compound semiconductor materials combining one element with two valence electrons and one or more with six....
stibine gas
The purest gas source of antimony, which is used in the manufacture of compound semiconductors for IR sensors and...
negative-electron-affinity photocathode
A photocathode having a P-type semiconductor with a work function less than its bandgap. The photocathode can release a...
deformable mirror device
A spatial light modulator consisting of a metallized polymer film stretched over an array of metal-oxide semiconductor...
exciton
An exciton is a quasiparticle that represents the bound state of an electron and a hole in a solid-state material, typically...
photoconductor
A light-sensitive resistor in which resistance decreases with increase in light intensity when illuminated. The device...
photoresist
Photoresist is a light-sensitive material used in photolithography processes, particularly in the fabrication of...
MSM photodiode
A metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiode is a type of photodetector that consists of metal electrodes on a semiconductor...
quantum well
A quantum well is a structure in quantum mechanics that confines particles, such as electrons or holes, in one spatial...
PN junction
The transition boundary between P-type and N-type materials in a semiconductor.
photovoltaic cell
A photovoltaic cell, commonly known as a solar cell, is a semiconductor device that directly converts light energy into...
wafer
In the context of electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, a wafer refers to a thin, flat disk or substrate made of a...
triac
A semiconductor device that functions as an electrically controlled switch for AC loads.
epitaxial equipment
Epitaxial equipment refers to a set of specialized tools and systems used in the process of epitaxy, which is the growth of...
photodiode
A two-electrode, radiation-sensitive junction formed in a semiconductor material in which the reverse current varies with...
lasing medium
The material that produces stimulated emission from within a laser oscillator. Laser gain media may vary from...
photovoltaic
Photovoltaic (PV) refers to a technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity using semiconductors. The term...
GaAlAs laser
A GaAlAs laser is a type of semiconductor laser diode that emits light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic...
gallium arsenide phosphide
Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP) is a semiconductor alloy composed of gallium (Ga), arsenic (As), and phosphorus (P). It...
intensified charge-coupled device camera
An intensified charge-coupled device (ICCD) camera is an advanced imaging device that combines the capabilities of both an...
multispectral imaging
Multispectral imaging is a technique that involves capturing and analyzing images at multiple discrete spectral bands within...
intrinsic photoconductivity
The absorption of a photon raising an electron across the forbidden gap from valence to conduction band of the semiconductor...
chemical vapor deposition equipment
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor...
gallium aluminum arsenide
A crystalline semiconductor alloy used as the light confinement layer in both single- and double-heterostructure diode...
functional material
Functional materials refer to materials that possess specific properties or functionalities that make them suitable for...
thin-film solar cell
A solar cell that is lightweight and flexible because of its construction by vacuum deposition of a semiconductor material...
photomask
A photomask, also known simply as a mask or reticle, is a key component in the photolithography process used in...
organic light-emitting diode
An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) is a type of light-emitting diode (LED) technology that utilizes organic compounds to...
masks for evaporation/deposition
In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit...
TO package
Housing that resembles a small metal can for a semiconductor component, photodetector or similar device.
depletion region
The region at the PN junction in a semiconductor radiation detector where the potential energies of the two materials create...
silicon carbide light-emitting diodes
Silicon carbide (SiC) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current is...
surface-emitting laser diode
A semiconductor laser diode that emits light perpendicular to the active region. The output radiation is taken through the...
laser pointer
Handheld optical laser device containing a semiconductor or DPSS source. The output is corrected via internal collimating...
infrared detector
An infrared detector is a device that is used to detect and measure infrared radiation, which lies beyond the visible...
photonic crystals
Photonic crystals are artificial structures or materials designed to manipulate and control the flow of light in a manner...
acceptor
Impurity in a semiconductor or any other electroluminescent device capable of inducing hole conduction and accepting a...
pulsed laser deposition
A technique for depositing a material coating on metal, ceramic, semiconductor or polymer substrates. The interaction of...
confocal resonator
A confocal resonator, also known as a confocal cavity or confocal laser resonator, is a type of optical resonator...
electronics
That branch of science involved in the study and utilization of the motion, emissions and behaviors of currents of...
extrinsic properties
The properties exhibited by a semiconductor as the result of its modification by imperfections and impurities in the crystal.
indium
Metal used in components of the crystalline semiconductor alloys indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs), indium gallium arsenide...
SPIN
Acronym for self-aligned polysilicon interconnect N-channel. A metal-gate process that uses aluminum for the metal-oxide...
laser annealing
Laser annealing is a process that involves using a laser beam to heat and modify the microstructure of a material, typically...
ellipsometry
Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the...
diode
A two-electrode device with an anode and a cathode that passes current in only one direction. It may be designed as an...
integrated photonics
Integrated photonics is a field of study and technology that involves the integration of optical components, such as lasers,...
CMOS image sensor
A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used...
fused quartz and silica
Fused quartz and silica are closely related materials, both composed primarily of silicon dioxide (SiO2), but they are...
short wavelength infrared
Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) refers to the portion of the infrared spectrum that encompasses wavelengths roughly between...
phase conjugation
The use of a reflective device, which can be fashioned from a variety of materials including gases, solids, dyes, aerosols,...
light-emitting diode
An LED, or light emitting diode, is a semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. LEDs...
quantum cascade laser
A quantum cascade laser (QCL) is a type of semiconductor laser that operates based on the principles of quantum mechanics....
photoluminescence mapping
A technique used for noncontact inspection of semiconductor wafers. The material is illuminated by an excitation source that...
heterojunction
A junction between semiconductors that differ in their doping level conductivities, and also in their atomic or alloy...
active layer
That layer in a semiconductor injection laser or light-emitting diode that provides optical gain.
excess noise factor
A factor, F, indicating the increase in shot noise in an avalanche photodiode as compared with the ideal multiplier, which...
covalent crystal
A crystal formed by covalent bonds that are generally highly directional by nature. The electric characteristics of these...
gallium nitride
Gallium nitride (GaN) is a compound made up of gallium (Ga) and nitrogen (N). It is a wide-bandgap semiconductor material...
Kerr effect
The Kerr effect, named after the physicist John Kerr who first observed it in 1875, is a nonlinear optical phenomenon where...
phase mask
In optics and photolithography, a phase mask refers to a device that modifies the phase of light waves passing through it....
probe card
A probe card is a testing device used in the semiconductor manufacturing industry to evaluate and test the electrical...
back-wall photovoltaic cell
A photovoltaic cell designed so that light travels through the front electrode and a semiconductor before it comes to the...
APD detector
An APD detector, or avalanche photodiode detector, is a type of photodetector used to detect light or optical signals by...
germanium detector
A type of photoconductive detector in which germanium, usually doped with boron, gallium and indium, serves as a...
thermoelectric solar cell
A solar cell that uses a thermoelectric converter, consisting of two sheets of metal with a semiconductor sandwiched between...
extrinsic detector
A photodetector composed of a semiconductor material whose responsive properties can be altered by the addition of...
laser active elements
Laser active elements typically refers to the substances or materials within a laser system that play a critical role in the...
linear array
A solid-state video detector consisting of a single row of light-sensitive semiconductor devices, used in linear-array...
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...
N-type conductivity
In a semiconductor, the state created by the addition of a dopant that provides excess electrons.
CID camera
CID, or charge injection device, camera refers to a type of imaging device that utilizes a specific kind of solid-state...
injection luminescent diode
A semiconductor diode operating in either a coherent or incoherent mode that is used as a near-infrared or visible source in...
charge-coupled device
A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital...
crystal diode
A diode with a semiconducting material, such as germanium or silicon, for one electrode, and a fine wire "whisker''...
photodetector
A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical...
quantum efficiency
Quantum efficiency (QE) is a measure of the effectiveness with which a device or system, typically in the context of...
solid-state imaging system
An imaging system that uses a mosaic of tiny light-sensitive semiconductors (phototransistors) to produce individual outputs...
thyristor
A family of semiconductor switching devices of which the silicon-controlled rectifier and the triac are most commonly used....
catastrophic optical damage
The darkening of the laser facet of a semiconductor laser diode. It can be prevented by placing the component in a...
plasmonics
Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free...
bandgap
In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed....
line-narrowed laser
A semiconductor laser in which the naturally occurring broad linewidth has been narrowed by incorporating the laser diode...

(204 results found)

Explore Our Content
News
Features
Latest Products
Webinars
White Papers
All Things Photonics Podcast
Videos
Our Summits & Conferences
Industry Events
Bookstore
Join Our Community
Subscribe
Advertise
Become a member
Sign in
Contribute a Feature
Suggest a Webinar
Submit a Press Release
Mobile Apps

About Us
Our Company
Our Publications
Contact Us
Career Opportunities
Teddi C. Laurin Scholarship

Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)



©2024 Photonics Media
100 West St.
Pittsfield, MA, 01201 USA
[email protected]
We use cookies to improve user experience and analyze our website traffic as stated in our Privacy Policy. By using this website, you agree to the use of cookies unless you have disabled them.