Photonics Dictionary

An electronic display in which a flat screen is formed by an orthogonal array of display devices, such as electroluminescent devices, light-emitting diodes or liquid crystal cells.

The utilization of the light produced when electrical energy is directly converted into light within devices used for visual readout displays or as complex logic-circuit elements. With EL lighting,...

An Abbe refractometer is a scientific instrument used to measure the refractive index of liquids and solids. Named after the German physicist Ernst Abbe, this device operates on the principle of...

Absolute white is a term used in color science and imaging to describe a reference white point that represents the brightest, most neutral white achievable. It serves as a standard for measuring and...

An absorption hologram is a type of hologram in which the image is formed by variations in the absorption of light within the recording medium. Unlike traditional holograms that rely primarily on...

An absorption spectrum is a graphical representation of the absorption of light by a material as a function of wavelength, frequency, or energy. It displays the specific wavelengths of light that are...

AC thin film electroluminescent (ACTFEL) display devices are a type of flat-panel display technology that uses electroluminescence to produce visible light. Structure: They consist of a thin...

Acrylic refers to a type of synthetic polymer material known for its versatility, clarity, and durability. It is commonly used in a wide range of applications due to its beneficial properties. Here...

Actinic glass is a type of glass specifically designed to filter or block ultraviolet (UV) light and other forms of actinic radiation. UV filtering: Actinic glass effectively absorbs or...

An active medium is a material or substance used in various optical devices and systems, where it plays a critical role in amplifying light or producing laser beams through the process of stimulated...

An active-matrix display is a type of flat-panel display technology where each pixel is actively controlled by one or more thin-film transistors (TFTs). This technology is commonly used in liquid...

An active matrix liquid crystal display (AMLCD) is a type of flat-panel display technology that utilizes an array of thin-film transistors (TFTs) to control the individual pixels on the screen. This...

An active matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) display is a type of flat-panel display technology that combines the active matrix addressing scheme with organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs)....

An OLED display that has an integrated electronic backplane as its substrate. Active-matrix OLED displays use at least two thin-film transistors (TFTs) to control the on-current at each OLED cell or...

Additive color mixing refers to the process of creating colors by combining different wavelengths of light. In this system, red, green, and blue (RGB) are considered primary colors. By mixing varying...

The additivity of luminance refers to a principle in visual perception and color theory where the perceived brightness of a combination of light sources or colors is the sum of the brightness of each...

Optical addressability refers to the capability to control or manipulate individual elements that emit or modulate light (such as pixels in a display or light sources in an optical network) using...

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) refers to a set of safety features and technologies designed to assist drivers in the driving process and enhance overall vehicle safety. These systems use...

An AI system-on-chip (SoC) is an integrated circuit that integrates hardware components optimized for performing AI computations efficiently. These components typically include: AI accelerators:...

Anisotropy refers to the property of exhibiting different values or characteristics when measured in different directions. In various fields, including physics, materials science, and geology,...

With respect to pictorial displays, the ratio of the width to the height. The television standard in the US is 4:3. High-definition or wide-screen television will have a ratio of 16:9.

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that integrates digital information, typically in the form of computer-generated graphics, images, or data, with the real-world environment in real-time. AR...

In computer graphics, the point on the display screen where the electron beam is located before the display instruction is executed. On directed beam display points, vectors and other graphic...

A matrix-controlled display that has information storage at the display surface, and requires that an element be addressed only once to assure that it is on or off.

A data transfer function that moves a rectangular group of pixels between bit maps. Often used in displaying cursors and pop-up windows.

In computer graphics, the assignment of each pixel on a display screen to its own switch in the computer memory.

Intentionally alternating the intensity of a display element in a graphic display device.

A blue diode laser is a type of semiconductor laser that emits light in the blue wavelength range of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically between 400 and 500 nanometers. Diode lasers are compact,...

A light-tight box that receives light from an object or scene and focuses it to form an image on a light-sensitive material or a detector. The camera generally contains a lens of variable aperture...

A CCD camera, or charge-coupled device camera, is a type of digital camera that utilizes a CCD image sensor to capture and record images. CCD cameras are widely used in various applications,...

Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are nanometer-sized semiconductor particles that are dispersed in a colloidal solution. These quantum dots have unique optical and electronic properties due to their...

Color vision refers to the ability of organisms to perceive and distinguish different wavelengths of light as different colors. It is a sensory ability that allows humans and many other animals to...

Colorimetry is the science and technology of quantitatively describing and measuring colors. It involves the precise evaluation of color attributes such as hue, saturation, and brightness, using...

A computer-generated hologram (CGH) is a holographic image produced using computational methods and algorithms, rather than traditional optical techniques. CGHs are generated entirely in digital form...

Selection of specific brightness values or minimum threshold levels as contingencies for the display of digital data.

The progressive defocusing of a cathode-ray tube display image that occurs when the deflected electron beam impinges on the cathode-ray tube screen at a slant.

Any of the constants that relate the tendency of the director to remain parallel to restoring torques throughout the media. The three constants of importance in liquid crystal displays are: splay --...

Diffractive optical processors are optical devices that utilize diffractive optics principles to perform various computational tasks, such as image processing, pattern recognition, and optical...

An optical diffuser is an optical component or material designed to scatter or diffuse light that passes through it. It is used to create a more even or uniform illumination, reduce glare, or soften...