Photonics Dictionary

A device designed to measure linear or rotary motion by detection of the movement of markings on a transparent medium past a fixed point of light. The encoder has a moving code plate, a glass disc...

A device for measuring diffraction grating efficiency at any angle of incidence, consisting of a reflectometer wherein the detector rotates around the grating at a specific distance and is attached...

In compact disc and CD-ROM technology, the portion of the drive that projects the laser light onto the surface of the media and picks up the resulting reflections read as data. The head includes the...

A device used to detect and measure small amounts of rotation. The rotating object contains a reflecting surface from which a beam of light is reflected onto a positional detector. A large distance...

Optical materials refer to substances or compounds specifically chosen for their optical properties and used in the fabrication of optical components and systems. These materials are characterized by...

Optical memory is a type of data storage technology that uses light to read and write information. It typically involves the use of lasers to encode data onto an optical medium, such as a disc, and...

Optical noise refers to undesirable fluctuations or disturbances in an optical signal that can affect the quality or integrity of the transmitted information. This type of noise is particularly...

An optical probe is a device equipped with optical components such as lenses, fibers, or detectors, designed to transmit and receive light for the purpose of measuring or analyzing optical properties...

The determination of the temperature of a source by the detection of its incandescent brightness.

Optical strain sensors are devices that utilize optical principles to measure the deformation or strain experienced by a material under mechanical stress. These sensors convert changes in strain into...

An optical table, also known as an optical bench or an optical breadboard, is a specialized platform used in optics laboratories for mounting and aligning optical components. These tables provide a...

A technique for detecting and measuring atmospheric pollution, in which an oscillating mirror directs half the incoming light to a transducer that controls amplitude and frequency, and the resulting...

Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and its manifestation as both particle and wave phenomena. It encompasses the...

Optoacoustic, or photoacoustic, refers to a phenomenon and related techniques that involve the generation of acoustic waves in a material induced by the absorption of light. The term "optoacoustic"...

A monolithic device containing both photonic and electronic sources, detectors, modulators, etc., on a single semiconductor substrate.

Optoelectronics is a branch of electronics that focuses on the study and application of devices and systems that use light and its interactions with different materials. The term "optoelectronics" is...

Optofluidics is an interdisciplinary field that combines principles from optics and fluidics to create devices and systems that integrate the manipulation of light and fluids. This field focuses on...

An otoscope is a medical device used by healthcare professionals, particularly ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists, primary care physicians, and pediatricians, to examine the ear canal and...

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...

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...

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...

The analysis of retinal zones in which different hues can be detected. Also called campimetry.

In a charge-coupled device, the detection of charge collected by the transport register rather than by the image-sensing elements.

In optics and photonics, "phase" refers to a property of electromagnetic waves, such as light, that describes the position of a wave at a given point in time within its oscillation cycle. More...

An erasable data recording and storage medium that uses a laser to heat the crystalline surface of the disc to a certain temperature, at which it becomes amorphous and records a bit of information;...

A phase-modulated sensor is a type of sensor that uses modulation of the phase of a signal to measure changes in a physical quantity. In such sensors, variations in the phase of the signal are...

Abbreviated PAI. An imaging modality with a hybrid technique based on the acoustic detection of optical absorption from endogenous chromophores or exogenous contrast agents. Light is absorbed by the...

Photoacoustic refers to the generation of acoustic (sound) waves following the absorption of light (usually laser pulses) by a material. This phenomenon occurs when light energy is absorbed by a...

Photocathodes are specialized materials or surfaces that exhibit the photoelectric effect, wherein the absorption of photons leads to the emission of electrons. When photons with sufficient energy...

An instrument used to detect and measure radiant energy by the formation of a chemical reaction.

Photoconductive antenna (PCA) is a semiconductor element that generates or detects high-frequency electromagnetic signals. Compact PCAs based on gallium arsenide (GaAs) or indium gallium arsenide...

A device for detecting visual and infrared radiation using a photoconductor as the principle sensing element.

A photodetector, also known as a photosensor or photodiode, is a device that detects and converts light into an electrical signal. Photodetectors are widely used in various applications, ranging from...

A photodiode detector is a semiconductor device that converts light into an electrical current. It operates based on the principle of the photoelectric effect, where photons of light incident on the...

A two-electrode, radiation-sensitive junction formed in a semiconductor material in which the reverse current varies with illumination. Photodiodes are used for the detection of optical power and for...

A spectroscopic process that detects and analyzes the discharge from an extrinsic surface with less than bandgap light. This method may determine the extrinsic surface-state energy levels of a...

A system having a photoelectric detector for the measurement of three quantities related by linear combination to tristimulus values of a sample.

The emission of an electron from a surface that occurs when a photon impinges upon the surface and is absorbed. This effect is the means by which photons may be detected.

A filter fluorometer that uses a photomultiplier tube to detect the fluorescence of a sample.

The use of photoelectric sensors to detect and measure the intensity of a light source. This application, as compared to human observation, results in higher speeds of operation, a greater...

An instrument used to measure the temperature of a source through the use of photoelectric cells to detect and measure the intensity of the light emitted by the source.

An input device for a computer that detects and reads the data, in the form of punched holes in cards, by light that is transmitted through the holes.