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5,268 terms
Photonics Dictionary
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OVPO
outside vapor phase oxidation
oximeter
A device that uses a photoelectric cell to determine the level of oxygenation in the blood.
oxytosis
Oxytosis refers to a form of cell death that is induced by oxidative stress. It is characterized by the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) within cells, leading to oxidative damage and...
P-type conductivity
In a semiconductor, the state created by the addition of a dopant that creates excess holes.
packet
The finite amount of electrical charge generated in response to incident radiation and transferred from one storage element to the next in a charge-coupled device. Each packet corresponds to a pixel...
packet switching
The transmission of data in groups (packets) of information~comma~ each handled as an aggregate.
packing density
1. In a photonic interconnect, the number of detectors in a given area. Detectors spaced too closely may give rise to crosstalk. 2. In the cross section of a fiber optic bundle, the ratio of fiber...
packing fraction
The ratio of the active core area of a fiber bundle to the total area at its light-emitting or receiving end.
PACS
picture archiving and communications system
pair production
The production of a positron-electron pair by a photon having energy greater than one mega-electron-volt, whereby some of the photon energy is converted to the rest mass of the pair.
pairing
In interlaced television scanning, an effect in which the lines of one field fail to fall exactly within the lines of the following field, both fields comprising one frame of the picture. The lines...
PAL
phase alternation line
PAM
pulse amplitude modulation
panoramic camera
A camera designed to form a continuous record of an expansive section of the horizon. The typical panoramic camera is mounted to rotate about a vertical axis. A slit opening in the film plane and the...
panoramic distortion
The image distortion produced by a panoramic camera with a swinging lens or a swinging mirror in front of a fixed lens. The magnification is greatest in the center and diminishes to each side in the...
panoramic lens
A lens system that is capable of producing a 360° image, or one that is very close to that. In recording, the image may be formed on a curved strip of film surrounding the lens, resulting in a...
panoramic telescope
A telescope so manufactured that the image remains erect and the position of the eyepiece is unchanged as the line of sight is pointed in any horizontal direction.
PAR
photosynthetically active radiation
parabolic mirror
->
paraboloidal mirror
A concave mirror that has the form of a paraboloid of revolution. The paraboloidal mirror may have only a portion of a paraboloidal surface through which the axis does not pass, and is known as an...
parabolic profile
The condition in which the index of refraction in an optical fiber varies as a parabolic function of the radius.
paraboloidal condenser
A condenser composed of a paraboloidal reflector and used for dark-field illumination.
paraboloidal mirror
A concave mirror that has the form of a paraboloid of revolution. The paraboloidal mirror may have only a portion of a paraboloidal surface through which the axis does not pass, and is known as an...
paraboloidal reflector
->
paraboloidal mirror
A concave mirror that has the form of a paraboloid of revolution. The paraboloidal mirror may have only a portion of a paraboloidal surface through which the axis does not pass, and is known as an...
paraffin oil
A saturated compound of carbon and hydrogen used as a liquid coating material for optical components in high-power laser applications. See liquid coating.
parallactic angle
The angular difference in the direction of an object as seen from two points of observation. The angle subtended at the object by the base length of a rangefinder.
parallax
The optical phenomenon that causes relative motion between two objects when the eyepoint is moved laterally. When parallax appears in a telescope between the image and reticle, this indicates the...
parallel beam
->
collimated radiation
Radiation in which every ray from any given object point can be considered to be parallel to every other. This is never completely the case: The light from a star is really diverging, and all...
parallel scanning
Parallel scanning refers to a method of acquiring data or images simultaneously from multiple sources or in parallel, rather than sequentially scanning each source one after another. This approach is...
parallel transmission
A mode of data transmission whereby bits of information are carried simultaneously at different frequencies over a single channel.
parallelogram distortion
In a camera or cathode-ray tube, distortion that is designated by a lateral skewing of the reproduced image.
parametric amplification
Means of amplifying optical waves whereby an intense coherent pump wave is made to interact with a nonlinear optical crystal to produce amplification at two other optical wavelengths. See parametric...
parasitic oscillation
Oscillation in rod and disc amplifiers that critically limits the achievable energy storage.
paraxial ray
A ray that behaves according to paraxial equations; one that lies close to and almost parallel to the optical axis.
parcentered
Description of an optical system in which all the elements are aligned on the same axis.
parity
In data transmission, a self-checking code using a separate bit (the parity bit) to assure that all bytes of transmitted data contain either an odd or an even number of bits. Upon receipt, the data...
partial coherence theory
Totally coherent radiation is produced by a purely monochromatic point source. In the real world the energy will have a limited bandwidth and the point source will subtend some angle resulting in...
particle acceleration
Particle acceleration refers to the process by which charged particles, such as electrons or protons, gain kinetic energy and increase their velocity. This acceleration can occur in various natural...
particle image velocimetry
A whole-flow-field technique providing instantaneous velocity vector measurements in a cross-section of a flow that is seeded with micron-sized particles. CCD or CMOS cameras and laser light sheets...
Paschen series
An array of lines in the infrared region of the emission spectrum of atomic hydrogen. Their wave numbers are expressed by the equation: where represents the wave number in the reciprocal centimeters,...
Paschen-Runge mounting
A mounting used for large concave gratings, whereby the slit, grating and plate holder lie in the Rowland circle, and the photographic plates lie along a large portion of the circle. In this way, a...
passive optical component
Passive optical components are devices or elements used in optical systems that do not require external power or active control to perform their function. These components manipulate light signals...
passive optical network
A passive optical network (PON) is a telecommunications network architecture that uses optical fibers and passive optical components to provide high-speed broadband services to end-users. In a PON...
PAT
pointing, acquisition and tracking
path-reversal principle
The criterion maintaining that if light follows a specific path through an optical system, it will, if reversed, traverse that same path in the opposite direction.
pathogen
A pathogen is a biological agent, such as a virus, bacterium, fungus, protozoan, or parasite, that causes disease in its host organism. Pathogens have the capability to invade host tissues,...
pathogenesis
Pathogenesis refers to the process by which a disease develops and progresses within an organism. It encompasses the sequence of events and mechanisms that lead to the onset, progression, and...
pattern
A device that determines the lens shape in the cutting or edging phase of fabrication. It also is used to denote the arrangement of markings on a reticle.
Pauli exclusion principle
The number of electrons that can share a principal quantum number by preventing identity between any two electrons' four quantum numbers, thereby permitting the periodic arrangement of the elements.
PBC
polarization beam combiner
PCM
pulse code modulation; phase-conjugate mirror
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Photonics Dictionary
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