Photonics Dictionary: T

A solar cell that is lightweight and flexible because of its construction by vacuum deposition of a semiconductor material (e.g., gallium arsenide or cadmium sulfide) onto a thin metal or plastic...

Thomson scattering is a phenomenon in physics where electromagnetic radiation, such as light, is scattered by charged particles. It is named after the British physicist J.J. Thomson, who first...

A time-to-amplitude converter (TAC) is an electronic circuit that converts a time interval between two events into an amplitude or voltage signal. TACs are commonly used in various scientific and...

The luminous flux emitted by a light source in all directions.

Image displacement by a decentered lens, rotated on a chuck whose axis of rotation passes through the geometrical center of the rim of the lens, when the light source is at an infinite distance. It...

In fiber optic communications, a light source whose beam can be modulated and sent along an optical fiber, and the electronics that support it.

A method of measuring distance by recording a single scene from two points of perspective. Surveying instruments can be used; in autofocus systems, rangefinders and three-dimensional imaging systems,...

Twyman-Green interferometry is a technique used in optics to measure the flatness or surface profile of optical components with high precision. It is based on the principles of interference of light...