Photonics Dictionary

A machine vision technique that compares a template of the desired image (the correlation kernel) with the actual camera image of an object and generates a new image (the correlation image) that...

An electron tube that is used as a camera tube for a television system. When the picture to be transmitted is focused on a photosensitive surface, electrons are emitted from each section of the...

A camera tube similar in design to the iconoscope. However, the image formed in the image iconoscope is projected on a photocathode that emits photoelectrons to be focused on a material, forming the...

An image intensifier, also known as an image intensification tube or image intensification device, is a specialized electronic device used to amplify low-light-level images to make them visible to...

A television camera tube that preceded the development of the vidicon tube and incorporated a method to separate reflected and scattered portions of the return beam so that only the scattered...

In optics, the term image jump refers to a displacement or shift in the apparent position of an image when a change occurs in the optical system. This phenomenon is often observed in certain types of...

Any form of lens, optical system (camera, telescope, microscope, etc.), or opto-electronics utilized for the purpose of producing an image of a given object.

A camera tube widely used in television broadcasting. It consists of three sections within a single vacuum envelope. 1. A photosensitive film sometimes called the photocathode. The scene to be...

An image signal processor (ISP) is a hardware component or subsystem in digital imaging devices responsible for capturing, processing, and enhancing images from a camera sensor. The ISP performs...

Photogrammetric compensation for incidental camera movement (which prevents attainment of true vertical photographs) whereby the imagery is copied in an oblique plane camera system.

In situ, from Latin meaning "in place," refers to a method or approach where measurements, observations, or experiments are conducted directly at the location of interest or within the natural...

An infrared lens is an optical component specifically designed and optimized for transmitting, focusing, or manipulating infrared (IR) radiation within the infrared spectrum. These lenses are used in...

An infrared light source is a device that emits light in the infrared spectrum, which lies beyond the visible spectrum of light. Infrared light has longer wavelengths than visible light and is...

An infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED) is a semiconductor device that emits infrared light when an electric current passes through it. Similar to standard LEDs that emit visible light, IR LEDs are...

Infrared optics refer to optical components and systems designed to manipulate and control infrared (IR) light, which lies beyond the visible spectrum. These components are crucial for various...

Infrared (IR) refers to the region of the electromagnetic spectrum with wavelengths longer than those of visible light, but shorter than those of microwaves. The infrared spectrum spans wavelengths...

In a camera, the movement of one or more lenses behind the front lens, rather than of the front lens itself, to bring the subject into focus. Because internal focusing does not require the front lens...

Integration time, in the context of optics, imaging systems, and sensor technology, refers to the duration over which a sensor collects and accumulates incoming light or signal. It is a crucial...

A lens that has a mount, usually bayonet or screw type in design, that can be used on a camera in place of lenses with the same mounting. This allows one camera body to be used with lenses of...

An invisibility cloak is technology that would render an object or individual invisible to the observer. In scientific research, efforts to create real-life invisibility cloaks have been...

A cathode-ray tube that serves as a picture tube in a television receiver. The signal representing the picture intensity is transmitted to the electron gun grid so that the beam intensity varies with...

A term applied to an electric charge image in a camera tube that remains for a period of a few frames after its initial formation.

A lens blank is a piece of optical material in a raw, unfinished state, typically in the form of a disk or block, from which lenses are eventually fabricated. Lens blanks are made from various...

A lens is a transparent optical device that focuses or diverges light, allowing it to pass through and form an image. Lenses are commonly used in optical systems, such as cameras, telescopes,...

A type of additive color photography using a lenticular structure impressed on a film base and a camera lens with a filter having three sectors of red, blue and green. Exposure of the film through...

The term light field refers to the spatial distribution of light rays traveling in all directions through a given space. It includes information about the intensity and direction of light rays at...

Line scan refers to a method of capturing images or data by scanning a single line at a time, as opposed to capturing the entire image simultaneously. This technique is commonly used in various...

A solid-state video detector consisting of a single row of light-sensitive semiconductor devices, used in linear-array cameras.

A linear image sensor is a type of solid-state electronic device used to capture and convert light into electrical signals. Unlike area image sensors (such as CCD or CMOS sensors), which capture an...

The acoustical holographic process in which the hologram consists of slight elevations in a liquid surface, in the areas of the antinodes of the interference pattern. Light diffracted from this...

Liquid or fluid optics refers to the use of liquids to create or enhance optical systems. These systems leverage the unique properties of liquids, such as their ability to change shape, refractive...

Long-wave infrared (LWIR) refers to a specific range of the infrared spectrum. Infrared radiation is divided into three main categories based on wavelength: near-infrared (NIR), mid-wave infrared...

A Mach-Zehnder interferometer is an optical device used to measure the phase difference between two collimated beams of light. It is named after the physicists Ludwig Mach and Ludwig Zehnder, who...

A machine vision lens is a specialized optical lens designed for use in machine vision systems, which are used for automated inspection, measurement, and quality control in industrial applications....

A machine vision system is an integrated combination of hardware and software components designed to capture, process, and analyze images to perform automated inspection, measurement, and quality...

Machine vision, also known as computer vision or computer sight, refers to the technology that enables machines, typically computers, to interpret and understand visual information from the world,...

A camera lens, used in macrophotography, that is designed and corrected to produce optimum definition of a nearby object when it is photographed at a magnification of approximately1:1.

A meniscus lens is an optical lens that has one side that is concave (curved inward) and the other side that is convex (curved outward). It can be categorized into two types based on its optical...

A metalens, short for "metasurface lens," is a type of optical lens that uses nanostructured materials to manipulate light at a subwavelength scale. Unlike traditional lenses made of glass or other...

The analysis of metal structure using an optical or electron microscope, generally with a camera, to record observations.

Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level. These components are miniaturized optical elements that manipulate light at a...

The formation of transistors, diodes, capacitors, resistors and other electronic elements directly on a flake of silicon by etching and selective absorption of doping elements. A circuit diagram...

A microdisplay is a miniature electronic display technology that is designed to project visual information onto a small screen. Unlike traditional displays, microdisplays are typically very compact...

A small card (10 x 15 cm) that has been treated with a photographic emulsion to record and store the microimages of documents and graphic information projected on it by a microfilm camera. A...

Two essential pieces of equipment used in connection with the microfilming process: a camera capable of producing, on film, large-scale reductions of almost any matter, printed, painted or...

A camera copying system that can reduce originals onto 35- or 16-mm film for easy storage.

A microlens array is a grid-like structure composed of numerous small lenses, typically arranged in a regular pattern. Each individual lens in the array is referred to as a microlens. These...

A microspectroscope equipped with a sensing and recording device, such as a camera, to measure the spectrum formed by microscopic samples.