Photonics Dictionary: P

A light beam whose electric vectors all vibrate in a single fixed plane.

A plasma accelerator is a type of particle accelerator that uses electric fields and magnetic fields to accelerate charged particles, typically electrons or ions, by exploiting the motion of charged...

Introduced into the laser beam from localized fluctuations in current density within the plasma itself. These fluctuations represent macroscopic changes of gain in the laser.

Plasma's ability to stop the transmission of laser light.

Plasmonics is a field of science and technology that focuses on the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and free electrons in a metal or semiconductor at the nanoscale. Specifically,...

The direct cladding used for fused silica cores to create large numerical aperture fibers and used as overcoats to glass-clad fibers to reduce microbend loss and increase mechanical protection.

A lens made from transparent plastic material. Lenses over 31/2 in. in diameter are usually machined, ground and polished. Smaller lenses are usually injection molded, the mount surrounding the lens...

Plastic optical fiber (POF) is a type of optical fiber made from transparent plastic, typically polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) or polycarbonate. Unlike traditional glass optical fibers, which are made...

Plastic optics refers to optical components or systems that are made from transparent plastic materials, as opposed to traditional optical components made from glass or other materials. Plastic...

Geometrical partition possible with a sphere that can be four, six, eight, 12 or 20 solid-angle wedges. Each platonic mass is made up of a given number of regular polygonal faces and is classified...

Pluggable optics, also known as pluggable transceivers or optical transceivers, are modular devices used in optical communication systems to transmit and receive data over optical fibers. They are...

The transition boundary between P-type and N-type materials in a semiconductor.

A device used to detect radiant energy by means of the thermal expansion of gas.

In optics, the Pockels effect refers to the phenomenon where the refractive index of a material changes in response to an applied electric field. This effect is utilized in Pockels cells, which are...

A Pockels cell, also known as an electro-optic modulator, is an optical device used to control the polarization of light by applying an electric field. It is named after the physicist Friedrich Carl...

A reference sphere used to represent all possible states of polarization. All linear polarizations will lie on the equator and circular polarizations will correspond with the poles. Named for the...

A point cloud is a set of data points in a three-dimensional coordinate system, where each point represents a specific location in space. These points are typically obtained through various sensing...

1. With respect to angular subtense, a source of light, such as a star, that is very small. In a lab, a point source may be simulated by imaging a large source onto and through a pinhole, or by...

The point spread function (PSF) is a fundamental concept in imaging that describes the response of an imaging system to a point source or point object. It characterizes how a single point of light is...

A crystal diode whose rectifying activity is determined by the touching of the crystal to a finely pointed wire surrounded by a material of opposite type.

A Huygenian eyepiece containing a pointer at its focal plane that is used -- when viewing an object through the eyepiece -- for specific designation.

A device attached to the end of an alignment telescope that detects and calculates a plane mirror's rotation axis that is perpendicular to the line of sight. The device is adaptable for evaluation of...

A stationary noise that occurs for visible light photodetection when a steady light source, such as a heterodyne reference beam or high background light, dominates the signal.

A polariton is a quasiparticle resulting from the strong coupling between photons (light particles) and certain types of excitations in a material, such as electronic excitations (electrons and...

Polarization refers to the orientation of oscillations in a transverse wave, such as light waves, radio waves, or other electromagnetic waves. In simpler terms, it describes the direction in which...

In passive optical components, loss that varies as the polarization state of the propagating wave changes. Expressed as the difference between the maximum and minimum loss in decibels.

A subsurface imaging technique based upon the polarization of light reflected off an object. The polarization of reflected light gives information about the object's absorption properties that...

A photometer having a pair of Nicol prisms introduced into the beam from the brighter of two sources to be compared. Turning one of these polarizers reduces the beam to equality with the beam of the...

Single-mode fiber that preserves the plane of polarization of the light launched into it as the beam propagates through its length. Also called polarization-maintaining fiber. The polarization is...

An optical device capable of transforming unpolarized or natural light into polarized light, usually by selective transmission of polarized rays.

A filter that polarizes light passing through it. It is possible to fabricate sheets of plastic or gelatin that contain birefringent crystals so oriented as to pass only polarized light. Such sheets...

The process of aligning the crystallites in a piezoelectric material by placing a large DC field across the element at an elevated temperature. The alignment of crystallites results in an increased...

A mold for glass or plastics often made of stainless steel to prevent pitting or oxidation in service. It is polished to the opposite curve of the surface that will be molded, and may be spherical or...

A tough, durable, heat- and cold-resistant optical quality plastic used in injection-molded items such as streetlight lenses, automotive taillights and audio compact discs.

A crystal-based device that combines and adjusts the intensities of multiple wavelengths of laser light in order to obtain the desired output wavelength.

A substance that transmits the infrared, but which is too delicate or fragile to be used in the form of a single crystal. Instead, the pure material is finely ground, pressed to the required shape,...

A material used to jacket fiber optic cables. It is chemical- and moisture-resistant, but not fire-resistant.

A polygonal mirror, also known as a multifaceted mirror or facet mirror, is a type of optical component used in various laser systems, optical scanners, and imaging devices. It consists of a flat or...

Polymers are large molecules composed of repeating structural units called monomers. These monomers are chemically bonded together to form long chains or networks, creating a macromolecular...