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2,469 terms
Photonics Dictionary
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return to zero
A form of binary notation that includes a third code representing a stop between bits.
reverse bias
Voltage that produces current flow in the direction of greater resistance to the steady-state direct current; i.e., from the cathode to the anode.
revolving lens fiber optic scanner
A sequential scanning device, utilizing a revolving lens, in which the cathode-ray tube image is transformed into a circle of fibers. The rotating lens focuses each fiber successively on a multiplier...
RFI
radio frequency interference
RHCP
right-hand circular polarization
rheinberg illumination
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optical staining
With respect to microscopy, also called dispersive staining, optical staining the projection of colors through areas of a colorless specimen by color filters that are constructed to fit over the...
rhodamine
Rhodamine refers to a family of fluorescent organic dyes that are widely used in various fields, including biology, chemistry, medicine, and materials science. These dyes are known for their bright...
rhomboid prism
A reflecting prism that is rhomboidal in shape. It has two parallel transmitting faces, and two parallel reflecting faces; the latter are oblique to the former (usually but not necessarily at...
riflescope
A small erect-image telescope for use as a sighting device on a rifle. The chief requirement is a long eye relief to avoid damage to the eye due to recoil. The power may lie anywhere between 1 and...
right-hand polarized wave
A wave that is polarized elliptically or circularly polarized and in which the electric field vector — observed while looking in the direction of propagation — rotates in a right-hand or...
ring dye laser
A laser using a dye solution as the active medium whose resonator is formed into a ring (or a triangle or another shape) by means of multiple mirrors.
ring topology
A system of local area networking in which each node or station is connected to two others, ultimately forming a loop. Data are passed in one direction only, being received by each node and then...
ring-laser gyroscope
A ring laser gyroscope (RLG) is a type of gyroscope that uses laser light to detect and measure changes in orientation. It operates based on the Sagnac effect, which is a fundamental principle of...
ringdown testing
A test method for determining high-reflectivity levels by monitoring cavity decay within a resonant cavity formed by two mirrors under test.
ringlight
A circular lamp or bundles of optical fibers placed around the perimeter of an objective lens to illuminate the object field below it.
robotic arms
Robotic arms, also known as robot arms or manipulator arms, are mechanical devices designed to mimic and perform the functions of human arms. They consist of multiple articulated segments, joints,...
Rockwell hardness
Rockwell hardness (Rc) refers to a method for measuring the hardness of a material, primarily metals, using an indentation test. It is named after the Rockwell scale, which was developed by Stanley...
roentgenology
The study of x-rays, their biological effects and technology. Named for W.C. Roentgen, who discovered x-rays in 1895.
ROI
region of interest
roll
In positioning, rotation about the line of sight or direction of travel.
rolling shutter artifacts
Rolling shutter artifacts are distortions or visual anomalies that can occur in images or videos captured by cameras with rolling shutter sensors. A rolling shutter is a type of image sensor that...
Ronchi grating
A transparent plate ruled with black lines and equal, clear spaces. It is used as a multiple knife-edge for testing a concave mirror.
Ronchi test
More efficient than the Foucault knife-edge test, this test examines curved mirrors by using a transmission grating with 40 to 200 lines per inch in place of the knife-edge, and a section or slit of...
Ross lens
A corrective lens system that is placed near the focal plane of a Newtonian telescope to increase its effective field of view by correcting for coma formed by the telescope's paraboloidal mirror.
rotary camera
A camera system used for microphotography that has a structure, such as a cylinder or surveyor belt, to rotate the documents to be recorded. The image is fixed relative to film motion and exposure is...
rotary laser
A structured light device using a rapidly rotating laser to project a beam of light that appears to the human eye as a continuous circle; used as a reference marker on walls or landscape for...
rotating wedge
A circular optical wedge (prism of small refracting angle) mounted to be rotated in the path of light rays to divert the line of sight to a restricted degree.
roughening laser
A roughening laser is a laser-based surface modification technique aimed at altering the surface texture of a material to achieve specific properties such as enhanced adhesion, light diffusion, or...
Rowland ghosts
In spectroscopy, the false images arranged symmetrically on both sides of the true line and caused by irregularities in the ruling of diffraction gratings.
RQI
Rayleigh quotient iteration
ruby laser
The optically pumped, solid-state laser that uses sapphire as the host lattice and chromium as the active ion. The emission takes place in the red portion of the spectrum.
Rugate filters
A Rugate filter is a type of optical filter that is designed to have a continuously varying refractive index profile throughout its thickness, rather than the discrete layers found in traditional...
run end coding
A digital imaging method whereby the first gray level in the ordered sequence and the position of the first lengths of all runs are specified; used when there are only two possible gray levels...
run length coding
A digital imaging method whereby the first gray level of each sequential point-by-point sample and its position in the succession of gray levels is encoded. It is used when there is a tendency for...
runout
In a linear stage, any deviation from the desired translation across a flat, straight line.
RVI
remote visual inspection
Rydberg atom
The term "Rydberg atom" refers to an atom in a highly excited state where one or more of its electrons are in a Rydberg orbital. A Rydberg atom is characterized by having an electron orbit that is...
S-ARROW
simplified antiresonant reflecting optical waveguide
saccharimeter
A special-purpose polarimeter having a scale calibrated directly in the concentration of sugar in the test solution.
sagged bevel
The shape of the edge of a concave surface when the depth of the bevel plane to the vertex of the surface is controlled to a required distance.
Sagnac interferometer
Sagnac interferometry is a technique used to measure rotation or angular velocity based on the principle of interference. It relies on the Sagnac effect, named after the French physicist Georges...
Saha equation
Formula that describes the thermal equilibrium of gas electrons and ions as a direct function of variations in temperature.
sandwich holography
The simultaneous exposure of two holographic plates with emulsions facing the object. After deformation, a second pair of plates is exposed to the deformed object. The back plate of the initial pair...
saticon
A direct-readout television pickup tube.
Savart plate
A double-plate device used to transmit polarized light and form interference fringes of the light, thus indicating its presence. It consists of two calcite plates of equal thickness, cut parallel to...
SBE
supertwisted birefringent effect
scalar diffraction theory
Scalar diffraction theory is a simplified approach used to describe the propagation of electromagnetic waves, particularly light, as they encounter obstacles or apertures. It is termed "scalar"...
scaling law
In coherence theory, an optical law put forth by physicist Emil Wolf that explains the behavior of light as it travels away from its source over large distances in space. Light spectra are assumed to...
scanner
1. A device used to trace out an object and build up an image. One of the most common of these types is video scanning. The scanning takes place inside the television tube as electrons, guided by...
scanning electron microscope
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a powerful imaging instrument used in scientific research, materials characterization, and various industrial applications. Unlike traditional optical...
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Photonics Dictionary
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