Photonics Dictionary

A system of modular mechanical components for building precision optical systems. The basic equipment includes a variety of modules for mounting, supporting and accurately positioning lenses and...

A device incorporating a spatial light modulator and a reference filter; used for matching an input optical waveform or signal with stored data in a photonic computer. This technique is done using...

The storage of information via optical means, primarily employing a low-power laser to inscribe data on a photosensitive surface as pits or phase differences and to read such data via reflected light...

A measure of the transmittance through an optical medium. Optical density equals the log to the base 10 of the reciprocal of the transmittance. where τλ is transmittance. In spectroscopy,...

Optical design and engineering services involve the development, customization, and optimization of optical systems and components to meet specific performance requirements and application needs....

Optical design software refers to specialized computer programs used by optical engineers, physicists, and designers to simulate, model, analyze, and optimize the performance of optical systems and...

The physical length of the light path in a substance divided by the refractive index of that substance. See also equivalent air path.

A small low-power microscope or magnifier with a scale that is used to measure the exit pupil diameter and eye relief on visual instruments. Optical dynameters are often used to measure the...

In dry etching, a method of characterizing the composition of solid materials such as metal. Atoms in the OES technique are excited by energy that comes from a spark formed between the sample and an...

Optical fiber optic switches are devices used in optical fiber communication systems to selectively route optical signals from one input fiber to one or more output fibers. They play a crucial role...

Optical fiber is a thin, flexible, transparent strand or filament made of glass or plastic used for transmitting light signals over long distances with minimal loss of signal quality. It serves as a...

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits or blocks specific wavelengths, or colors, of light. Optical filters are used to control the spectral content of light in various...

A piece of glass, pyrex or quartz having one or both surfaces carefully ground and polished plano, generally flat to less than a tenth of a wavelength. Optical flats are used in surface testing to...

The optical Fourier transform is a mathematical operation applied to optical signals that involves transforming a spatial domain representation of an image into its corresponding frequency domain...

An optical frequency comb is a tool used for measuring frequencies with extremely high precision. It is essentially a spectrum consisting of a series of discrete, equally spaced frequency lines, much...

An optical gate typically refers to a device or system that controls the transmission of light, allowing it to pass through or be blocked in a manner analogous to an electronic gate controlling the...

Optical glass refers to a type of glass specifically engineered and manufactured for use in optical components and systems, such as lenses, prisms, mirrors, and filters. Optical glass is...

A device for measuring diffraction grating efficiency at any angle of incidence, consisting of a reflectometer wherein the detector rotates around the grating at a specific distance and is attached...

An optical grating, in the context of optics and physics, refers to a device with a periodic structure of closely spaced, parallel slits or rulings. These slits or rulings act as obstacles to the...

Any optical transmission channel used in telecommunications designed to connect two end terminals or to be connected in series with other channels using an optical circuit.

Optical manufacturing tools and machinery encompass a wide range of equipment, instruments, and systems used in the fabrication, shaping, finishing, and testing of optical components and systems....

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...

Optical memory is a type of data storage technology that uses light to read and write information. It typically involves the use of lasers to encode data onto an optical medium, such as a disc, and...

Laser-powered telephone device for analog communications that employs a vibrating plastic membrane as a transmitter to modulate laser light piped via optical fibers from a central exchange, omitting...

A multilayered thin-film device used to modulate transmitted light in integrated photonic circuits.

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

Optical noise refers to undesirable fluctuations or disturbances in an optical signal that can affect the quality or integrity of the transmitted information. This type of noise is particularly...

The phenomenon that makes nonlinear the mathematical expression for the electrical polarization of a medium through which lightwaves are passing. Characterizes high-power lasers principally;...

An optical scanning system found in most computer scanners that can read documents, often in many type styles, and convert the document text into digital information to be stored, and displayed by a...

Optical parametric amplification (OPA) is a process in nonlinear optics where a weak signal beam is amplified by a much stronger pump beam through the nonlinear interaction in a nonlinear optical...

A laser-pumped crystal with nonlinear optical properties inside of an optical resonator in which the output generates coherent light whose output can be tuned continuously over a variety of infrared...

Optical perturbation refers to any disturbance or alteration in the characteristics of light as it propagates through or interacts with a medium. This perturbation can include changes in the...

Optical phase distortion refers to a phenomenon where the phase of an optical wavefront is altered as it propagates through a medium. This distortion can result from variations in the refractive...

Also known as a white-light interferometer. Measures surface texture and shape from nanometer-scale roughness to millimeter-scale step heights. A standard arrangement includes an illumination source,...

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...

Optical strain sensors are devices that utilize optical principles to measure the deformation or strain experienced by a material under mechanical stress. These sensors convert changes in strain into...

Optical switching refers to the process of controlling the routing or transmission of optical signals within a network using various techniques to selectively switch or redirect optical paths. This...

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.

An optical table, also known as an optical bench or an optical breadboard, is a specialized platform used in optics laboratories for mounting and aligning optical components. These tables provide a...

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 method for characterizing a fiber wherein an optical pulse is transmitted through the fiber, and the resulting light scattered and reflected to the input is measured (by an optical time-domain...

Sets of paired lines carefully designed to give the most accurate pointing possible for various lengths of sight.