Photonics Dictionary: C

The darkening of the laser facet of a semiconductor laser diode. It can be prevented by placing the component in a hermetically sealed enclosure.

A fiber optic end plate constructed by drawing a bundle of parallel fibers embedded in glass and cutting it into thin slices. These slices are assembled in a plane and heated to produce a...

A CCD image sensor, or charge-coupled device image sensor, is a type of electronic device used to convert optical images into electronic signals. It is a key component in digital cameras, camcorders,...

In optics and photonics, ceramics refer to advanced ceramic materials that possess unique optical properties, making them suitable for various applications involving the manipulation and control of...

The number of channels per unit bandwidth handled by a single optical fiber.

Chemical sensing refers to the detection and measurement of specific chemical compounds or substances in various environments or samples. It involves the use of sensors or analytical techniques to...

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) equipment refers to a class of specialized apparatus used in the process of chemical vapor deposition, a technique for depositing thin films of various materials onto...

The ray that passes through the center of the aperture stop in an optical system. It often is called the principal ray of an oblique beam.

A small fiber optic endoscope used in laser surgery.

Circular-ranging optical coherence tomography (CR-OCT) is a specialized imaging technique used in medical diagnostics and research to obtain high-resolution cross-sectional images of biological...

This type of miniaturized system, referred to as CMOS qPCR, combines microfluidic technology with an ultralow-light CMOS bio-optical sensor with LEDs as the optical excitation source to achieve...

An imaging process in which the single opening of a simple pinhole camera is replaced with many openings called, collectively, the aperture. The recorded picture, which consists of many overlapping...

A coherent fiber bundle (CFB), also known as a coherent fiber optic bundle, is an assembly of multiple optical fibers arranged in a specific geometric pattern to maintain the spatial coherence of...

Cold atoms refer to atoms that have been cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically in the microkelvin (µK) to nanokelvin (nK) range, close to absolute zero (0 Kelvin or -273.15°C). At...

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...

Computational imaging refers to the use of computational techniques, algorithms, and hardware to enhance or enable imaging capabilities beyond what traditional optical systems can achieve. It...

Computer vision enables computers to interpret and make decisions based on visual data, such as images and videos. It involves the development of algorithms, techniques, and systems that enable...

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...

A reflecting grating ruled on a concave spherical surface that not only disperses the light but focuses the spectrum. The great advantage of this grating lies in the fact that no separate collimating...

An optical instrument, generally a polarizing microscope, that is used to determine the interference figures and optical axis of a sample crystal. Also called a hodoscope.

Also called color blocking. The formation of a block by making optical contact between a number of optical elements and a large optical flat.

A semispherical or conical lens created directly on the core of an optical fiber to focus light from a laser into the fiber core.

The fraction of available output from a radiant source that is coupled and transmitted by an optical fiber.