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COMSOL Inc. - Predict with Precision 1-26 728x90
8,738 terms

Photonics Dictionary

Search 8,700+ definitions in the Photonics Dictionary—your authoritative source for terms in optics, lasers, imaging, fiber optics, and related technologies.

sol-gel
A gelatinous fluid that can be used as a porous thin-film coating for optical components, including laser beam collimators, or as a protective coating for glass and crystalline materials.
solar absorber
A substance capable of converting solar radiation into thermal energy.
solar array
A group of solar cells that are electrically contacted and physically arranged so that they may be oriented in the direction of the sun simultaneously.
solar battery
A series of solar cells arranged to collect solar radiation and to generate a given amount of electrical energy.
solar black
A material, such as gold black and carbon black, that is used as a solar absorber because of its high absorptance and low reflectivity over the solar spectrum.
solar cell
A device for converting sunlight into electrical energy, consisting of a sandwich of P-type and N-type semiconducting wafers. A photon with sufficient energy striking the cell can dislodge an...
solar constant of radiation
Solar radiation intensity existing in free space at the mean solar distance of the Earth. Commonly expressed in g cal cm-2min-1, the constant is equal to the amount of incident radiation -- in unit...
solar furnace
An optical system that is designed to produce a high temperature in a specified area by the optical direction and concentration of solar radiation on that area. The system usually consists of a...
solar heat storage
The process of transferring collected energy from solar radiation into a heat-absorbing medium (e.g., an insulated tank of water) for use at a later time.
solar laser
A laser pumped by solar radiation focused by mirrors.
solar occultation
Measurement of absorption by the gas of interest in the 2- to 6-µm range as a function of tangent height pressure. The pressure profile may be inferred by using CO2 absorption profile...
solar plasma
Plasma formed by heat radiation from the sun.
solar radiation
Radiation from the sun that is made up of a very wide range of wavelengths, from the long infrared to the short ultraviolet with its greatest intensity in the visible green at about 5000 Å. The...
solar simulation
The simulation of solar radiation in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum for the analysis of extraterrestrial sunlight and its effects on spacecraft, materials and components.
solar simulator
A solar simulator is a device used to replicate the spectrum and intensity of sunlight in a controlled environment for testing and research purposes. Solar simulators are employed in various...
solar wind
The constant outward flow of weakly magnetized plasma from the sun that is deflected by the magnetic field of the earth and, flowing around the field, creates a magnetosphere.
solarization
1. The reduction in the developable density of a photographic emulsion that has been extremely overexposed. 2. In a laser system, damage resulting from ultraviolet radiation that degrades the lasing...
Solc filter (Šolc filter)
A type of birefringent filter, similar in principle to the Lyot filter, consisting of many identical birefringent elements, often arranged in a "fan" or "folded" configuration, positioned between two...
soleil compensator
An optical compensator similar to the Babinet compensator, but which produces a phase-change consistent throughout its field, as opposed to the Babinet's phase-change, which occurs progressively...
solenoid
In micropositioning, a remote positioning device in which an electric current drives a movable armature mounted on an electromagnetic coil.
solid optics
Optical elements arranged with no spaces between, so that the light travels only through glass, not air.
solid-state drive
A solid-state drive (SSD) is a storage device that stores data electronically using solid-state memory chips. Unlike traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) that use spinning disks and mechanical...
solid-state imaging system
An imaging system that uses a mosaic of tiny light-sensitive semiconductors (phototransistors) to produce individual outputs that are then converted into a coherent video signal.
solid-state lamp
An electroluminescent semiconductor that emits low intensity radiation in the green or red regions. Used as an indicator lamp.
solid-state laser
A solid-state laser is a type of laser that uses a solid gain medium (as opposed to a liquid or gas) to produce coherent light. The term "solid-state" refers to the fact that the active medium, where...
solid-state light valve
A light valve that uses a crystal as the control layer medium and that operates on the principle of the electro-optic effect.
solid-state linear motor -> piezo worm
A piezoelectric translator that moves up and down a spindle like a caterpillar. It clamps itself at one end, expands, clamps the other end, releases the first end, and then contracts and begins the...
soliton
Any isolated wave that propagates without dispersion of energy. Specifically to photonics, an ultrashort pulse of laser light that propagates through a waveguide without characteristic chromatic...
soliton laser
A color center laser whose output is coupled to an external control laser cavity and then fed back to the main laser cavity to provide enhanced pulse shaping, leading to ultrashort pulse generation.
SONAR
sound navigation and ranging
sonde
A ruggedized scintillation counter used in oil well logging. The cylindrical housing contains a gamma ray source, a crystalline scintillator and a photomultiplier tube. As the sonde is drawn through...
SONET
synchronous optical network
Sonnar lens
A photographic objective that uses the thick meniscus principle to obtain its power. It is designed to photograph small fields at large apertures.
sonoholography -> acoustical holography
Acoustical holography is a technique used to visualize and analyze sound fields in three-dimensional space. It involves capturing the complex spatial distribution of acoustic waves, much like how...
sonoluminescence
The luminescence of a substance resulting from its exposure to ultrasonic waves.
sonoptography
The process whereby sound waves are employed to form a three-dimensional image of an object. The process involves generally: the recording of the diffraction pattern of an object exposed to sound...
sonoradiography
The diagnostic procedure that uses ultrasonic energy to probe the body and, with the help of laser beams, a reflecting membrane to produce a three-dimensional picture.
sonosensitive plate
Device that uses a coherent reference wave to record the interference patterns produced by incident ultrasonic waves on an object.
SOP
state of polarization
SOQE
Society for Optical and Quantum Electronics
SOR
synchrotron orbital radiation
SOS
silicon on sapphire
sound pressure
Calculated at a given point in a medium as the instantaneous pressure at that point in the presence of a sound wave, minus static pressure at that point.
source
A physical source of radiation, as contrasted to illuminant. See illuminant.
source correlation
The relationship between different wavelengths of light generated by a source, which may affect the spectral distribution of the light as it travels great distances in space; put forth by physicist...
source efficiency
The ratio of emitted optical power of a source to the input electrical power.
space charge
A volumetric electrical charge resulting from a flow of charged particles across a gap.
space pattern
On a test chart, the pattern designed to direct and measure geometric distortion.
space-division multiplex
In fiber optics, the condition in which each fiber of a bundle carries a separate channel.
spaser
A spaser (surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a nanoscale device that generates coherent optical radiation at nanometer-scale dimensions. It is analogous to a laser...

Photonics Dictionary

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