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6,181 terms

Photonics Dictionary

SI unit of luminous intensity. It is defined as one sixtieth the normal intensity of one square centimeter of a blackbody at the solidification temperature of platinum. A point source of one candela...

candlepower

The luminous intensity of a source of light expressed in candelas.

candoluminescence

The luminescence of an incandescent material.

cantilever

A projecting beam or other structure supported only at one end.

capacitance

The ability of a conductor to store an electrical charge; its value is given in farads as the ratio of the stored charge on one conductor to the potential difference between it and a second conductor.

capacitor

A device that accumulates and stores electrical energy to introduce capacitance into a circuit. Basically, it is composed of two electrical conductors, separated by an insulating medium.

carbon arc

An electric discharge between two carbon rods that are touched together to start the arc and then separated slightly. The light comes from the heated carbon vapor. High-intensity arcs use cored...

carbon dioxide laser

A gas laser in which the energy-state transitions between vibrational and rotational states of CO2 molecules give emission at long IR, about 10 µm, wavelengths. The laser can maintain...

carbon film

In analysis, the carbon layer that is evaporation-deposited on a specimen to protect and ready it for study by electron microscopy.

carbonization

Carbonization is a process in which organic materials are heated in the absence of air, leading to the decomposition of the material and the production of carbon-rich residue. During carbonization,...

carcinotron -> backward-wave oscillator

An amplifying device with a wide tuning range in which an electron gun sends a beam of electrons into a slow-wave structure. The electron beam and the electromagnetic wave move in opposite directions...

card reader

A system that generally uses a photodetector to decode punched cards for information, or for input to a computer, by sensing the light transmitted through the punched holes.

cardioid condenser

An oil immersion condenser used to permit only light that has been diffracted or dispersed by a microscope specimen to enter the microscope. It is used in dark-field microscopy.

carrier

An analog signal capable of being modulated as to frequency, amplitude or phase to carry information.

carrier injection

Carrier injection refers to the process of introducing charge carriers (either electrons or holes) into a semiconductor material. Semiconductors are materials with electrical conductivity between...

carrier-to-noise ratio

The ratio of the power of the carrier wave to that of unwanted signal distortions, or noise, before any nonlinear signal processing such as detection or amplitude limiting.

CARS

coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering; coherent amplified Raman spectroscopy

cascade method

A heterochromatic photometric process using successive comparison of similar chromaticities and the calculation of relative luminances of unlike chromaticities as the product of ratios of luminances...

cascade tube

An instrument consisting of a high-voltage vacuum tube used to form hard x-rays or high-speed ion beams. By partitioning the tube into separate sections, the total voltage is divided.

case hardening

A surface heat-treating process that produces a highly stressed surface. In case-hardening of glass, a plate of glass is heated almost to the softening point and then cooled quickly in a blast of...

case-hardened glass

Glass that has been treated by the case-hardening process.

Casimir force

The Casimir force is a quantum phenomenon that results in an attractive force between two closely spaced uncharged conductive surfaces. This force arises from the quantum vacuum fluctuations of the...

CAT

clear air turbulence; catadioptric; computerized axial tomography

catastrophic optical damage

The darkening of the laser facet of a semiconductor laser diode. It can be prevented by placing the component in a hermetically sealed enclosure.

cathode emission -> cathode stream

Also known as cathode rays. Formerly, this term described a stream of electrons emitted from the cathode of a gas-discharge tube during its bombardment by positive ions. It also describes any stream...

cathode glow

The apparent luminosity or glow that immediately envelops the cathode in a gas-discharge tube operating at low pressures. The glow increases as the pressure decreases.

cathode radiant sensitivity

Cathode radiant sensitivity refers to the ability of a photocathode to convert incident radiant energy, typically in the form of light, into an electrical signal. Photocathodes are components used in...

cathode rays -> cathode stream

cathode stream

cathode

A cathode is an electrode through which electric current flows out of a polarized electrical device. In different contexts, the specific role and behavior of the cathode can vary, but it generally...

cathode-ray graphic display

A cathode-ray tube, driven by a computer, that receives impulses of information from the computer and displays it in a series of lines, circles, curves or other graphic forms to be viewed by the user.

cathode-ray oscilloscope -> oscilloscope

A system in which a supplied signal causes the deflection of the electron beam in a cathode-ray tube, thus forming a visible trace on the phosphor screen of the tube and providing for examination of...

cathode-ray output

A term used in data processing to describe a cathode-ray tube that displays graphic or character data.

cathode-ray tube deflection plane

A plane that lies at right angles to the tube axis that has the deflection center.

cathode-ray tube envelope

Envelopes for cathode-ray tubes are made by blowing glass in the same manner as light bulbs. They have a fairly flat end face to carry the phosphor material applied internally.

cathode-ray tube grid -> Wehnelt cylinder

Also known as cathode-ray tube grid or shield. A cylindrically shaped electrode that, containing the cathode of a cathode-ray tube with opposite potential, is designed to focus and control the...

cathode-ray tube shield -> Wehnelt cylinder

Also known as cathode-ray tube grid or shield. A cylindrically shaped electrode that, containing the cathode of a cathode-ray tube with opposite potential, is designed to focus and control the...

cathode-ray tube

A vacuum tube with an electron gun at one end and a fluorescent screen at the other. Electrons emitted from a heated filament are accelerated by a series of annular anodes at progressively higher...

cathodic etching -> vacuum etching

Also known as cathodic etching. Surface etching achieved by bombarding an evacuated surface with gas ions.

cation

An ion carrying a positive charge and thus attracted to the cathode during electrolysis.

catoptric light

Light that is directed or focused by means of curved reflective surfaces.

catoptrics

Catoptrics is the field of optics concerned with the reflection of light from reflective surfaces such as mirrors. It encompasses the study and analysis of how light rays interact with these...

CATV

community antenna television

caustic

A surface that envelops a bundle of rays or bundle of normals to the wave surface. It may be observed as a hollow, luminous cusp in a turbid medium.

cavity dumping

A Q-switch method that can result in extreme pulse shortening.

CBEMA

Computer and Business Equipment Manufacturers' Association

cubic centimeters

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 record images. CCD cameras are widely used in various applications,...

CCD image sensor

A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images into electronic signals. It is a key component in digital cameras, camcorders,...

CCD -> charge-coupled device

A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital cameras, camcorders, and scientific instruments. It consists of an integrated...

Photonics Dictionary

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