Meadowlark Optics - Wave Plates 6/24 LB 2024

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809 terms

Photonics Dictionary

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cube-corner prism -> corner cube

A corner cube, also known as a corner reflector or retroreflector prism, is a type of optical device used to reflect light or electromagnetic waves back towards their source with minimal deviation in...

curvature

The measure of departure from a flat surface, as applied to lenses; the reciprocal of radius. Applies to any surface, including lenses, mirrors and image surfaces.

curvature of field

A lens aberration that causes a flat object surface to be imaged onto a curved surface rather than a plane.

cylinder axis

In a cylindrical lens, the meridian parallel to the generating lines of the cylindrical surface. In a toric lens, the cylinder axis is the axis of the equivalent cylindrical surface that has been...

dark-field microscopy

A technique whereby the sample is illuminated by a hollow cone of light larger than the acceptance angle of the objective, so that only scattered light is seen, revealing any irregularities of the...

darkening

The formation of a dark-colored film on a metal surface by chemical activity.

Debot effect

The conversion of an internal latent image into a surface latent image through exposure to infrared radiation. The converse of the Herschel effect.

decentration aberration

An aberration occurring in a lens system when one or more of the centers of curvature of the optical surfaces do not coincide with the system's axis.

deep

A concave surface that has too much negative power; i.e., its radius of curvature is too short. This condition can be corrected if material is removed from the center section of the polisher.

deep ultraviolet

Deep ultraviolet (DUV or deep-UV) refers to a specific range of ultraviolet light with shorter wavelengths than those in the UV-A and UV-B regions. The exact wavelength range considered as DUV can...

deep-ultraviolet laser

A deep-ultraviolet (DUV) laser is a type of laser that emits light in the deep ultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically with wavelengths ranging from about 200 nm down to 10 nm....

deflection under static load

For an optical table, the amount of displacement that occurs when a heavy load is placed or moved on the surface. To measure deflection under static load, a 113-kg (250 lb) weight is placed in the...

dewetting

Dewetting is a phenomenon in materials science and physics where a thin film or coating spontaneously undergoes a process of breaking up and forming isolated droplets on a substrate. This occurs due...

diamond turning

Diamond turning, also known as diamond machining or diamond cutting, is a precision machining process used to produce high-quality optical surfaces and components with extremely tight tolerances. It...

diamond-turned optic

Diamond turning refers to a precision machining process used to produce complex optical components, particularly lenses and mirrors, from materials such as metals, plastics, and crystalline materials...

differential interference contrast microscopy

Differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, also known as Nomarski interference contrast microscopy, is an optical imaging technique used in microscopy to enhance the contrast of transparent...

diffraction grating

A diffraction grating is an optical component consisting of a surface with a periodic structure of equally spaced, parallel grooves or rulings. These rulings act as an array of closely spaced slits...

diffractive optics

Optical elements that use diffraction to control wavefronts. Diffractive optical elements include diffraction gratings, surface-relief diffractive lenses, holographic optical elements and...

diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a nondestructive analytical technique used to investigate the optical properties of materials, particularly in the field of spectroscopy. Unlike traditional...

diffuse reflection

Nonspecular reflection from a rough surface.

diffuse reflector

A reflecting surface that scatters radiation that is incident on it, thus producing diffuse reflection.

diffuser

An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is used to create a more even or uniform illumination, reduce glare, or soften...

dig

A cosmetic defect on the surface of an optical element. A dig is nearly equal in terms of its length and width. The size is specified numerically by its average diameter in 1/100 of a millimeter;...

dip

The departure of a curved surface from the plane that is tangent to its vertex. See sag.

direct laser interference patterning

Also called DLIP, a high-speed, high-resolution processing technique that uses high-power, pulsed laser systems to directly ablate micro- and nanoperiodic structures with different features on large...

direct time-of-flight

Direct time-of-flight (dTOF) is a technique used in 3D imaging and depth sensing to measure the time taken for light or electromagnetic waves to travel from a source to a target object and back to a...

dirt hole

A hole filled with dirt such as a polishing abrasive and located in an optical surface. See dig; scratch.

dispersive lens -> diverging lens

A diverging lens is a type of lens that causes parallel rays of light to spread out or diverge. It is thinner in the center than at the edges and is commonly referred to as a concave lens. The most...

divergent lens -> diverging lens

divergent-meniscus lens

A lens with one surface convex and the other concave, the latter having the greater curvature. It also is known as a diverging meniscus lens.

diverging lens

doma

A primitive crystal possessing two plane surfaces that form a dihedral angle bisected by another plane surface.

dome -> optical instrument dome

A dome-shaped structure used for some optical instruments in place of a flat window. The transparent material should be of good quality and the hemispherical surfaces should be concentric.

double-concave lens

A diverging lens with both surfaces concave.

double-convex lens

A converging lens with both surfaces convex.

doublet

1. A compound lens consisting of two elements. If there is an air space between the elements it is called an "air-spaced doublet.'' If the inner surfaces are cemented together, it is called a...

dual-axis laser

Dual-axis laser is a laser device or system capable of emitting laser beams along two orthogonal axes (typically X and Y axes) concurrently. This allows for precise control and manipulation of the...

edge

The flat or angled surface, usually fine-ground, that limits the aperture of a lens or prism surface.

edge-emitting LED

An edge-emitting light-emitting diode is a type of LED structure where light emission occurs primarily along the edge of the semiconductor chip rather than from the surface. Edge-emitting LEDs are...

egg-crating

A weight reducing method whereby material from the rear of a reflector is removed leaving a pattern of ribs normal to the surface in an egg-crate pattern.

electro-optic modulator

An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an external electrical signal. Electro-optic modulation is a fundamental...

electrocapillarity modulator

A type of optical modulator with potential application in optical switching and displays, in which applied voltage causes a change of interfacial tension between mercury and an electrolyte, varying...

electrochromic display

Type of solid-state display tube in which the readout surface is coated with a material that changes color when positively or negatively charged.

electron storage ring

An advanced magnetic device used in x-ray lithography to beam x-rays onto the surface of silicon wafers used for semiconductor circuits.

electron-beam recording

The recording of the information contained in a modulated electron beam onto photographic or silicon resin-coated materials. A direct recording method involves the passage of the recording medium...

electrowetting display

An electrowetting display (EWD) is a type of electronic display technology that utilizes the principles of electrowetting to control the behavior of colored oil droplets on a hydrophobic surface....

ellipsometry

Ellipsometry is an optical technique used to characterize the properties of thin films and surfaces. It is based on the measurement of changes in the polarization state of light reflected or...

emissive power

The emissivity of a body times the emissive power of a blackbody at the same temperature. For a blackbody, it is the total radiation per unit area of radiating surface.

enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is a laboratory technique used to detect and measure the presence of specific substances, such as antibodies, antigens, proteins, hormones, or other...

episcope -> opaque projector

An opaque projector is a device used for enlarging and projecting images from opaque objects such as printed pages, photographs, or three-dimensional objects onto a screen or surface. Unlike a...

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