Photonics Dictionary: B

Backscatter refers to the phenomenon in which radiation or waves are scattered backward, opposite to the direction of the incident beam. This occurs when the incident radiation encounters a target or...

A device used to alter the shape of or energy distribution within a beam of radiation.

Mathematical compensation for the nonhydrogenic behavior of recombination radiation levels of gases, based on the quantum effect method.

The technology that deals with the interaction of organic materials with light and other forms of radiant energy whose quantum unit is the photon. This includes the emission, detection, absorption,...

Radiation from the invisible (usually ultraviolet) region of the spectrum.

An ideal body that completely absorbs all radiant energy striking it and, therefore, appears perfectly black at all wavelengths. The radiation emitted by such a body when heated is referred to as...

A source that attempts to create the characteristics of an ideal blackbody. It consists of a cavity, generally spherical, made of an opaque material and insulated from thermal effects, with a small...

A blackbody source, often simply referred to as a blackbody, is a theoretical or practical physical object that absorbs all electromagnetic radiation incident upon it and emits radiation in a...

A thermometric instrument used for the detection and measurement of radiant energy. Its essential component is a short narrow strip covered with a dead black absorbing coating and mounted at the...

A technique in which a beam of x-rays is directed against a crystal, the atoms of which, because of their lattice arrangement, reflect the ray in the same way as a series of plane surfaces. If the...

Electromagnetic radiation that is emitted by an electron as it is accelerated or decelerated while moving through the electric field of an ion.

Brillouin scattering is a phenomenon in physics where an incident electromagnetic wave (usually light) interacts with acoustic phonons (quantized lattice vibrations) in a material, resulting in the...

Radiation that occurs perpendicular to the plane of the radiation device.

A device that functions throughout the continuous radiation of a linearly polarized plane wave, and whose nonreciprocity arises from the Faraday rotation of linearly polarized radiation.