Photonics Dictionary

The fundamental tool of microdensitometry, the microdensitometer is an instrument used for the precise measurement of microscopic optical densities (i.e. optical absorption) by detection of faint...

The science that deals with the measurement of optical absorbance (i.e. optical densities) over microscopic areas of a given specimen or optical material.

A microdisplay is a miniature electronic display technology that is designed to project visual information onto a small screen. Unlike traditional displays, microdisplays are typically very compact...

Refers to micron-size complex machines that have physical dimensions suitable for the fabrication of optical switches for use in state-of-the-art communications networks.

Equipment that supports microscopic live-cell imaging by managing the gas, media perfusion, temperature and other factors to which a sample is exposed. While reducing the negative impacts these...

A small card (10 x 15 cm) that has been treated with a photographic emulsion to record and store the microimages of documents and graphic information projected on it by a microfilm camera. A...

A camera used to reduce originals onto film for easy storage. There are two basic types: one in which the film is fixed during exposure, and one in which the film is exposed while moving past an...

Two essential pieces of equipment used in connection with the microfilming process: a camera capable of producing, on film, large-scale reductions of almost any matter, printed, painted or...

A device used to view microfilmed documents where the image on film is projected, in magnified form, onto a rear projection screen for viewing.

A camera copying system that can reduce originals onto 35- or 16-mm film for easy storage.

An extremely short, high intensity electronic flash of light, having a duration of about 1 x 10-6 s, used in photographing rapidly moving subjects.

Microfluidics is a multidisciplinary field that involves the manipulation and control of very small fluid volumes, typically in the microliter (10-6 liters) to picoliter (10-12 liters) range, within...

A fluoroscope equipped with a magnified, fine-grained fluorescent screen to determine the fluorescence emitted by a microscopic source.

A graphic reproduction of an object formed by a microscope or another optical system. Also an instrument used to make tiny writing, etching, or engravings.

Extremely small organic and inorganic systems of molecules within a substance. In general, systems are colloidal size in spite of the large number of molecules. Photochemistry and optical...

A hologram having an image scale that is orders of magnitude smaller than microfiche images.

A microlens array is a grid-like structure composed of numerous small lenses, typically arranged in a regular pattern. Each individual lens in the array is referred to as a microlens. These...

A technique for producing micron-size structures on surfaces by using short-wavelength light or electron beams.

A device that provides means for accurately moving minuscule tools over the surface of a microscopic object. The motion precision of a micromanipulator exceeds that of the unaided human hand....

1. The SI unit of length equal to 10-6 m. Also called micron. 2. A screw thread device used to make accurate physical linear measurements.

A unit of length in the metric system equal to one millionth of a meter (10-6 m). Also called micrometer. Abbreviated µm.

Output noise in a laser beam resulting from acoustic disturbances of mirror separation or orientation. Such disturbances may come either from the plasma or from vibration of external sources.

The formation of microimages for microreduction. The technique is used, for example, in the production of precision reticles or resolution charts. The sensitized materials used in the process must...

A photograph reduced to the microscopic scale and stored on a microfilm as seen with microfiches for the purpose of storing and archiving information.

An instrument capable of measuring the transmitted or reflected luminance from a very small area seen under a microscope. Microphotometers are the fundamental tools of microphotometry and are also...

The measurement of the intensity of spectral lines by the examination of a very small area under a microscope and the measurement of the density at any point of the image.

The technology of manipulating light on a micro scale. In optical communications, this is usually accomplished using two or more materials with significantly different indicies of refraction. In most...

A laser-induced scar on experimental bare glass surfaces usually attributable to threshold damage and indicative of isolated damage-susceptible areas in the glass.

An instrument that produces an intense, tightly focused beam of ions to stimulate emissions from a minute section of a sample undergoing spectroscopic analysis. The ion beams found in microprobes are...

A miniature projecting device designed to enhance and reproduce the image generated by a smaller image-forming instrument. Microprojectors can be used to determine the image-forming qualities of...

Equivalent to 10-6 radian, where 1 radian equals 180/pi degrees. A rod 1 km in length will be moved by an angle of 1 µrad if the end of the rod is raised 1 mm.

Radiographic recording and enhancement of the micoscopic details within the structure of thin specimens at a high magnification. Also known as x-ray micrography

An approximated measure of the smallest change in color temperature detectable by the human eye, defined as the reciprocal of the color temperature times 106. Also called mired or reciprocal...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small, single-stranded RNA molecules, typically consisting of about 19 to 24 nucleotides, that play important roles in the regulation of gene expression in cells....

An instrument consisting essentially of a tube 160 mm long, with an objective lens at the distant end and an eyepiece at the near end. The objective forms a real aerial image of the object in the...

An eyepiece located at the near end of the microscope tube. It often is a simple Huygens eyepiece, but compensating and flat-field projection eyepieces are quite efficient. Negative eyepieces are...

The liquid used in microscopy to fill the space between the high-power objective lens and the microscope slide in order to increase the numerical aperture (NA) or collecting power in object space of...

The lens located at the object end of a microscope tube. A wide range of objectives is available, including simple achromats, the color-corrected apochromats and the flat-field objectives. Objectives...

The component of a microscope on which the sample or slide to be examined is placed. Depending on the design of the microscope, the stage may play a passive role of just supporting the sample or...

Characteristic of an object so small in size or so fine in structure that it cannot be seen by the unaided eye. A microscopic object may be rendered visible when examined under a microscope.

Microscopy is a scientific technique that involves the use of microscopes to observe and study objects that are too small to be seen with the naked eye. Microscopes are instruments that magnify and...

A microspectroscope equipped with a sensing and recording device, such as a camera, to measure the spectrum formed by microscopic samples.

A specialized spectrophotometer for use through a microscope on very small areas of an object.

A system composed of a prism spectroscope and compound microscope to provide the visual comparison of two spectra simultaneously -- that of the sample focused by the microscope and that of the...

Microscopic investigation of two-dimensional areas of a three-dimensional object that can be quantitatively evaluated by consideration of the line intersections or point counts obtained via...

A binocular microscope designed for the viewing of stereo pairs. As these stereoscopic image pairs are seen through a microstereoscope, they are merged into a single image allowing the brain to...

A device used for slicing very thin specimens in preparation for mounting on a microscope slide.