Photonics Dictionary

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...

In various fields of science and technology, an active element typically refers to a component or substance that actively participates in or facilitates a process, operation, or reaction. Here are...

In the context of semiconductors and electronics, the active layer is the part of a semiconductor device where the essential electronic activities take place. This includes the movement and...

Anisotropic is a term used to describe a material or substance that exhibits different properties or behaviors in different directions. In other words, the physical or mechanical characteristics of...

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,...

An APD detector, or avalanche photodiode detector, is a type of photodetector used to detect light or optical signals by converting incoming photons into electrical current. It operates based on the...

An argon-fluoride (ArF) excimer laser is a type of ultraviolet laser that operates using a mixture of argon and fluorine gases. Excimer lasers are a class of gas lasers that emit light in the UV...

Bioelectricity refers to the electrical potentials and currents generated by biological processes within living organisms. These electrical phenomena arise from the movement of ions across cell...

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,...

For light incident on a plane boundary between two regions having different refractive indices, the angle of incidence at which the reflectance is zero for light that has its electrical field vector...

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...

A cryogenically cooled long-wave infrared (LWIR) camera is a specialized thermal imaging device designed to detect infrared radiation in the long-wave infrared spectrum, typically ranging from 8 to...

A data acquisition (DAQ) system is a combination of hardware and software used to collect, process, and analyze data from physical phenomena or processes. data acquisition system suppliers...

The region at the PN junction in a semiconductor radiation detector where the potential energies of the two materials create an energy barrier, which results in an electrical field that depletes the...

A detector array refers to a collection of individual detector elements arranged in a two-dimensional grid or matrix format. Each element within the array is capable of detecting electromagnetic...

Exhibiting the characteristic of materials that are electrical insulators or in which an electric field can be sustained with a minimum dispersion of power. They exhibit nonlinear properties, such as...

Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) is an international standard for medical imaging created by both the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) and the American...

Digital signal processing (DSP) refers to the manipulation and analysis of signals, which are representations of physical quantities that vary over time or space. In the context of DSP, these signals...

A diode laser is a type of laser that uses a semiconductor diode as the active medium to generate coherent light. Semiconductor diodes are electronic devices that conduct electricity primarily in one...

An electrically excited laser having carbon monoxide as the lasing material and in which lasing occurs in a partial inversion between adjacent, vibrational fields. Vibrational energy is cycled...

The change in the refractive index of a material under the influence of an electrical field.

An electro-optic modulator (EOM) is a device used to modulate the amplitude, phase, or polarization of light waves using an external electrical signal. Electro-optic modulation is a fundamental...

Radiation emitted from vibrating charged particles. A combination of oscillating electrical and magnetic fields that propagates through otherwise empty space with the velocity of light. This constant...

The control of free electron movement through the use of electrical or magnetic fields, and use of this electron movement in research investigation of electronic diffraction phenomena, directly...

The movement of particles or ions in a solution toward the electrode having the opposite sign because of the application of an electrical field.

The effect produced by electrical charges or fields alone, without interaction with magnetic influence.

The use of an applied electrical field to focus a cathode-ray tube's electron beam.

Emission spectroscopy is a technique used to study the emission of electromagnetic radiation (light) by atoms, molecules, or ions when they undergo transitions from excited states to lower energy...

Ferroelectric materials are a type of dielectric materials that exhibit spontaneous electric polarization, meaning they possess a permanent electric dipole moment even in the absence of an external...

A fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) is a type of gyroscope that uses the interference of light waves to detect changes in orientation or rotation. It operates based on the principle of the Sagnac effect,...

An X-Y electrically addressable series of arrays with individual electron emitters bombarding a phosphor-coated transparent plate. The phosphor is induced into luminescence, similar to traditional...

The Floquet Fermi liquid state refers to a concept in condensed matter physics that arises when a system is subjected to periodic driving or modulation, typically by an external periodic field such...

One of the electrodes used to focus the electron beam of a cathode-ray tube. As the electrode's voltage is changed, its electrical field is changed, resulting in a change of the electron beam's spot...

Functional materials refer to materials that possess specific properties or functionalities that make them suitable for particular applications or purposes. These materials are designed and...

Gallium arsenide (GaAs) is a compound semiconductor material composed of gallium (Ga) and arsenic (As). It belongs to the III-V group of semiconductors and has a zincblende crystal structure. GaAs is...

A galvanometer is an instrument used for detecting and measuring small electric currents. It typically consists of a coil of wire suspended in a magnetic field, with a pointer attached to the coil....

A galvanometric scanner, also known as a galvanometer scanner or galvo scanner, is a type of optical scanning device used to rapidly and precisely direct a laser beam or other light source to...

Gallium nitride-based light-emitting diodes (GaN-based LEDs) are semiconductor devices that emit light when an electric current passes through them. These LEDs are constructed using gallium nitride...

A beam of light whose electrical field amplitude distribution is Gaussian. When such a beam is circular in cross section, the amplitude is E(r) = E(0) exp [-(r/w)2], where r is the distance from beam...

Germanium crystal refers to a crystalline form of the element germanium (Ge), which is a metalloid and semiconductor commonly used in various electronic and optical applications. Germanium crystals...

Graphene is a two-dimensional allotrope of carbon consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice pattern. It is the basic building block of other carbon-based materials...

The light flash that occurs when an electrical field is applied to a phosphor already excited by ultraviolet radiation.

A helium-neon (HeNe) laser is a type of gas laser that emits visible red light at a wavelength of 632.8 nm. It operates based on the principle of stimulated emission of photons from excited helium...

A thin film of absorbing or nonabsorbing layers in which the absorption of radiation at any point is directly proportional to the electrical field intensity at that point.

A wave in the electromagnetic spectrum that has both electrical and magnetic field vectors in the direction of propagation.

A mode possessing components of both electrical and magnetic field vectors in the direction of propagation.

Indium phosphide (InP) is a compound semiconductor material composed of indium (In) and phosphorus (P). It belongs to the III-V group of semiconductors, where elements from groups III and V of the...

Inductance is a fundamental property of an electrical circuit or component that describes its ability to store energy in a magnetic field when an electric current flows through it. It is typically...