Photonics Dictionary

Absorption spectroscopy is a fundamental analytical technique used to study the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter. It involves measuring the absorption of light by a sample...

An accelerometer is a sensor or transducer that measures the rate of change of velocity of an object, or in simpler terms, it measures acceleration. Accelerometers are widely used in various...

Accessible radiation refers to the portion of radiation from a source that can be reached or detected by humans, instruments, or devices under specific conditions of use. This term is often used in...

An acousto-optic tunable filter (AOTF) is a device that utilizes the acousto-optic effect to selectively filter and transmit light based on its wavelength or frequency. It operates by applying an...

An acquisition control processor typically refers to a specialized computer or electronic system component used in industrial automation, data acquisition systems, or scientific instrumentation. Its...

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...

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 actuator is a mechanical or electromechanical device that is responsible for moving or controlling a mechanism or system. It converts various forms of energy (such as electrical, hydraulic,...

Alternating current (AC) is an electrical current in which the direction of flow of electric charge periodically reverses. This reversal occurs at regular intervals, typically in a sinusoidal...

A device that enlarges and strengthens a signal's output without significantly distorting its original waveshape. There are amplifiers for acoustical, optical and electronic signals.

Area scan, in the context of imaging and cameras, refers to a method of capturing an entire two-dimensional image in a single snapshot or exposure. Unlike line scan, which captures images one line at...

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...

An attenuator is an electronic or optical device used to reduce the power or intensity of a signal without significantly affecting its waveform or other characteristics. Attenuators are commonly used...

Attosecond photonics sources refer to devices or systems that generate extremely short pulses of light on the order of attoseconds (1 attosecond = 10-18 seconds). These ultrafast light pulses are in...

Automatic current control (ACC) refers to a system or mechanism designed to regulate and maintain a desired level of electric current in a circuit or device without manual intervention. This control...

Azadioxatriangulenium is a type of organic compound with a unique triangular molecular structure. It is often abbreviated as ADOTA. This compound belongs to the class of polycyclic aromatic...

Back-side illumination (BSI) is a technology used in imaging sensors, particularly in digital cameras, where the light is allowed to enter the sensor from the back side, opposite to where the...

In semiconductor physics, the term bandgap refers to the energy range in a material where no electronic states are allowed. It represents the energy difference between the valence band, which is the...

A device, either visual or electronic, that emits signals to identify set positions for use in the navigation of aircraft and ships along flight paths and channels, or as a warning against entering a...

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 broadband filter is an electronic or electromagnetic device designed to pass a range of frequencies or signals within a specified bandwidth while attenuating or rejecting signals outside of that...

Carbon fullerenes are a class of carbon-based molecules composed entirely of carbon atoms arranged in a hollow, closed, cage-like structure. The most well-known fullerenes are spherical and are often...

Carrier injection refers to the process of introducing charge carriers (either electrons or holes) into a semiconductor material. Semiconductors are materials with electrical conductivity between...

A cathode is an electrode through which electric current flows out of a polarized electrical device. In different contexts, the specific role and behavior of the cathode can vary, but it generally...

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,...

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,...

Chalcogenide refers to a class of compounds containing elements from group 16 of the periodic table, which includes sulfur (S), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te). These elements are known as...

A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic image sensor used in various imaging devices, including digital cameras, camcorders, and scientific instruments. It consists of an integrated...

A CMOS camera refers to an imaging device that employs a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor to capture digital images. CMOS cameras have become ubiquitous due to their low...

A CMOS image sensor, short for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor image sensor, is a type of semiconductor device used to capture visual information and convert it into electrical signals for...

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...

Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) refers to a technology used in the fabrication of integrated circuits, particularly semiconductor devices like microprocessors, memory chips, and image...

Dark current density refers to the electric current that flows through a semiconductor device in the absence of any external illumination. It is primarily caused by thermal generation of charge...

A frame taken to identify electronic noise in a CCD imaging device. A dark frame is recorded without exposing the CCD to any external light by, for example, leaving the shutter of a CCD camera...

Dichalcogenides are a class of compounds composed of two atoms of a chalcogen element bonded to a single atom of a metal or metalloid element. Chalcogens are the elements in group 16 of the periodic...

Die bonding is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics assembly, where a semiconductor die or chip is attached and electrically connected to a substrate or a package....

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

A digital camera is a device that captures and records still images or video in digital format. Unlike traditional film cameras, which use photographic film to capture and store images, digital...

A linear computation or algorithm performed on a selected series in the form of an input signal that produces a new series as output. The computational device may be a specifically designed...

An electric or electronic device that regulates the voltage going to a light source as a means of varying the intensity of the light emitted by the source.

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...

Directed energy refers to a type of energy that is emitted and transferred in a controlled direction. The term is often associated with military and technological applications where energy, typically...

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...

1. The branch of physics that deals with the use of electrical energy to create or manipulate light waves, generally by changing the refractive index of a light-propagating material; 2....

An electromagnon is a quasiparticle excitation that combines aspects of both magnetism and electric polarization in a crystal lattice. Specifically, it refers to a collective excitation of spins and...