Photonics Dictionary

Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the fabrication of optical components and systems. These materials are characterized by...

An instrument that measures several optical parameters, such as optical power and wavelength, with a single measurement input.

An instrument for determining the temperature of a hot object by examining the color spectrum of the visible light it gives off and comparing it to the known temperature and wavelength spectrum of...

In an optical fiber or waveguide communications system, an optoelectronic device or module that receives an optical signal, converts this optical signal to an electrical signal which is then...

A group of lenses, or any combination of lenses, mirrors and prisms, so constructed as to refract or reflect light to perform some definite optical function.

Refers to a variety of methods and tools used to determine the surface contour and performance of optical components and systems.

An optical testing instrument is a device or system used to evaluate and measure the performance, quality, and characteristics of optical components, systems, and devices. These instruments play a...

An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) is a specialized instrument used in optical fiber communications to characterize and analyze the optical fibers' characteristics, including attenuation,...

A configuration or device mounted at the end of a fiber or cable that is intended to prevent reflection.

A material that can rotate the polarization of light that passes through it. An optically active material exhibits different refractive indices for left- and right-circular polarizations (circular...

A variable focal length lens system that retains the object in focus as one or more lenses move as a unit along its optical axis.

The area of optics that deals with the interaction of light with a given material. The optical properties of material are generally described by the absorption, transmission, reflection, and...

A monolithic device containing both photonic and electronic sources, detectors, modulators, etc., on a single semiconductor substrate.

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

A crystal having the axes of its grains aligned so that they have directional magnetic characteristics.

A lenticular screen having the lenticules tipped about 20° to compensate for off-normal projection.

The system of color classification and description produced by Wilhelm Ostwald.

The approximate dimension of the refractive-index correlation length in a given medium.

A device that uses a photoelectric cell to determine the level of oxygenation in the blood.

A semiconductor material in which the dopants create holes as the majority charge carrier. It is formed by doping with acceptor atoms.

A telescope so manufactured that the image remains erect and the position of the eyepiece is unchanged as the line of sight is pointed in any horizontal direction.

A pair of waveguides with axes normal to the plane and that guide uniform cylindrical waves.

A device that converts data transmitted in the parallel mode to a sequence of bits at a single frequency for output in the serial mode.

Description of an optical system in which all the elements are aligned on the same axis.

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

The term perovskite refers to a specific crystal structure commonly found in various materials. Perovskite structures have a cubic arrangement of oxygen ions, forming a framework within which other...

A phase-modulated sensor is a type of sensor that uses modulation of the phase of a signal to measure changes in a physical quantity. In such sensors, variations in the phase of the signal are...

A type of matched filter that responds only to the phase of incoming light; the output has a much greater intensity than that of a classical matched filter, which responds to phase and amplitude. The...

A type of glass that includes phosphorus pentoxide and that, unlike silica-based glass, is resistant to hydrofluoric acid.

The property of a phosphor that determines its ability to emit light for a time after the stimulus has been extinguished. Persistence may extend to over a minute.

An instrument used to detect and measure radiant energy by the formation of a chemical reaction.

The discrepancy between the absolute luminance threshold and the photochromatic threshold.

A photographic recording instrument that measures deviation from the vertical of a drilled well or mine.

Photoconductive antenna (PCA) is a semiconductor element that generates or detects high-frequency electromagnetic signals. Compact PCAs based on gallium arsenide (GaAs) or indium gallium arsenide...

A device for detecting visual and infrared radiation using a photoconductor as the principle sensing element.

A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical signal. Photodetectors are widely used in various applications, ranging from...

A photodiode detector is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It operates based on the principle of the photoelectric effect, where photons of light incident on the...

A system having a photoelectric detector for the measurement of three quantities related by linear combination to tristimulus values of a sample.

A device used to count objects that pass a given point by allowing each object to obstruct a beam of light falling on a photocell. Slow counting rates can be recorded by a mechanical counter, but...

A device consisting of a microammeter, a photovoltaic cell and a battery. It is used for the measurement of scene brightness and the determination of correct exposure for photographic processes.

A filter fluorometer that uses a photomultiplier tube to detect the fluorescence of a sample.

Also known as electronic photometer. A photometer with a photocell, phototransistor or phototube for measuring the intensity of light.

An instrument used to measure the temperature of a source through the use of photoelectric cells to detect and measure the intensity of the light emitted by the source.

A photoelectric photometer used to measure the reflectance of a surface.

A system that consists of a spectrophotometer with a photoelectric detector for measurement of radiant energy.

An electronic tube instrument in which the anode current varies with the intensity of light incident on the cathode.

A photometer that uses a photoemissive tube to detect and measure light. See photoelectric photometry.