Photonics Dictionary

A molded lens is an optical lens manufactured using a molding process, typically involving the shaping of a material, such as glass or plastic, into the desired lens shape. This process involves...

A method of predicting the nonlinear optical effects exhibited by different molecules without synthesizing the molecules themselves.

A molecular motor refers to a nano-sized device composed of organic molecules or other small-scale components that can convert light energy into mechanical motion at the molecular level. These...

Graphic evaluation of the operation of a steam thermodynamic cycle of a solar energy system on which enthalpy is plotted against entropy.

Molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2) is a dichalcogenide compound composed of molybdenum (Mo) and selenium (Se). It belongs to the family of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), which have garnered...

In physics, momentum transfer is the amount of momentum transferred from one particle to another during particle collision or interaction. This phenomenon can be utilized in various areas of physics...

In a laser diode, the photocurrent produced by a photodiode that detects the emission from the rear facet of the semiconductor chip. It can be used to provide feedback control of the forward current...

Light consisting of a single wavelength or a very narrow band of wavelengths.

A monochromator is an optical instrument used to isolate and select a narrow range of wavelengths from a broader spectrum of light. The term monochromator is derived from "monochromatic," meaning...

With respect to a crystal, a monoclinic crystal consists of three unequal axes, two of which intersect each other obliquely and yet still form right angles to the third.

A type of tubing used to protect optical fiber cables, consisting of a wire spiral of aluminum, galvanized steel or stainless steel, encased in a polyvinyl chloride or silicon rubber coating. These...

A device that is fabricated in a single piece; A device (i.e. circuit) that is operated at a single frequency or a single class of frequencies.

An array of refractive microlenses that are round, square and hexagonal and as small as 15 µm. They are used for Hartmann testing, laser diode collimation and other applications that require...

A molecule that has the ability to chemically combine with other molecules to form a polymer, hence being capable of being polymerized. See polymer; polymerization

A character generation CRT that functions on the principle of secondary emission. The target holds a set of aluminum characters, select characters being scanned by the electron beam. The secondary...

A set of algorithms used to study the structural and spatial characteristics of objects in a digitized image for applications including feature extraction and image segmentation in machine vision and...

One surface of a nonconducting plate that is coated with many minute particles of photoemissive material that are insulated from one another.

A large telescope mirror fabricated from several smaller sections.

Spectroscopy characterized by the Mossbauer effect - recoilless emission and absorption of nuclear gamma radiation- which investigates miniscule changes in the energy levels of atomic nuclei in...

In optics, a motion controller refers to a device or system that precisely controls the movement of optical components, such as mirrors, lenses, stages, or other elements within an optical setup. The...

A camera equipped with a lens and a long length of perforated film, the latter being moved intermittently between exposures by a pulldown claw or sprocket. A rotating shutter serves to cut off the...

Capacity of a vision system to capture an image of an object in motion and to resolve the direction and speed of that motion.

The visual phenomenon of the apparent difference in the rate of motion of two objects that are actually moving at the same velocity but that lie at different distances from the observer.

A metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodiode is a type of photodetector that consists of metal electrodes on a semiconductor material. Unlike the more common PIN photodiodes, which have a P-type and...

Computerized lens design algorithm that permits the lens MTF characteristic to be included and controlled during the optimization process. MTF optimizations typically allow lens design users to...

Multi-axis alignment refers to the process of aligning or adjusting components or systems in multiple spatial dimensions or axes. In various technical and engineering contexts, achieving precise...

A group of four cameras loaded with different combinations of filters and film (one is usually an infrared color film) to permit the recording of the same subject in four separate regions of the...

A spectrometric instrument that detects radiation simultaneously in multiple channels, sorts it spectrally from the deep ultraviolet to the infrared, digitizes the information and stores it for...

A hologram formed by reconstruction of multicolor wavefronts. The system used to produce the hologram is designed to combine the different colored wavefronts of the separate illuminating sources, and...

Used in computer design for optical systems with common parts and different applications.

Fiber optic cable bearing many fibers independently sheathed and capable of carrying unrelated signals. They often surround a central strength member, and can be either loose- or tight-buffered. One...

A fiber optic connector or splice that mates two multifiber cables, optically aligning all of the individual fibers simultaneously.

An array of optically distinct fibers that are fused into one strand. They are used to keep the resolution efficiency of the smaller, single fibers and eliminate difficulty in handling. Their...

A lens with internally adjustable elements to produce a range of focal lengths. Unlike a true zoom lens, a multifocal lens must be refocused each time the focal length is changed. See variable-focus...

A multihaul transceiver is an optical transceiver module designed to support multiple network architectures or transmission technologies within a single compact device. It offers versatility and...

A photovoltaic device that consists of multiple p-n junctions to produce a greater efficiency when in use than that of traditional single junction devices. A multijunction device is unique because...

A coating made up of many layers of material having alternating high and low refractive index. In this way, it is possible to produce coatings with a great variety of properties. These may be...

A fiber optic bundle split along its length with the ends of the fibers extending separately to illuminate different points with a single light source.