Photonics Dictionary: M

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machine vision lighting

Machine vision lighting refers to the use of specific lighting techniques and equipment in the field of machine vision, which is a technology that enables machines to capture and interpret visual...

magnetic rotation spectroscopy

Technique in which the polarization rotation of light, and its relationship to the magnetic field strength can be analyzed and related to various experimental parameters when passed through a...

magnetorheological finishing

Magnetorheological finishing (MRF) is a precision optics polishing technique used for shaping and finishing optical surfaces to achieve extremely high levels of smoothness and accuracy. It is...

Maldi

matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization

maser

A maser (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic radiation in the microwave frequency range. It is the microwave analog of a...

masks for evaporation/deposition

In the context of thin film deposition processes such as evaporation or sputtering, masks are used to selectively deposit material onto substrates, creating patterns or structures with precise...

mass spectrometry

Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique used to determine the molecular composition and structure of compounds based on their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z). It involves ionizing chemical...

master oscillation -> injection seeding

The use of a small ultrastable master oscillator (a diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser) to achieve single-frequency operation of a large pulsed Nd:YAG host laser, providing improved bandwidth and temporal...

matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization

Process of analysis in which the analyte substance is distributed in a matrix before laser desorption. This method avoids the mass limitations associated with laser desorption and possibly enhances...

maximum permissable exposure

The maximum level of laser radiation that a person may be exposed to without adverse biological effects.

medical lasers

Medical lasers are devices that produce intense beams of light with specific characteristics and properties, which are used for various medical applications. These lasers emit light in the form of...

MEL

many-element laser; maximum excess loss (MEL) — the many element laser is a laser unit that consists of N like elements of active materials for support with the mode selection of the laser output. The mode selection properties of a many element laser have been experimentally exploited with as many as 10 like elements. Maximum excess loss is the maximum power lost within a give system (typically a fiber optic communication system) including scattering, dispersion, absorption and coupling loss.

meniscus lens

A meniscus lens is an optical lens that has one side that is concave (curved inward) and the other side that is convex (curved outward). It can be categorized into two types based on its optical...

metal vapor laser

Devices in which the lasing medium is a vapor of metal atoms or ions, sometimes mixed with another gas. Metal vapor lasers use a variety of metal types to generate a variety of laser lines for...

micro-optics

Micro-optics refers to the design, fabrication, and application of optical components and systems at a microscale level. These components are miniaturized optical elements that manipulate light at a...

microbubble resonator

A microbubble resonator is a device used in photonics and optical physics for the precise manipulation of light waves. It consists of a micro-sized, gas-filled spherical cavity (the "microbubble")...

microphonic noise

Output noise in a laser beam resulting from acoustic disturbances of mirror separation or orientation. Such disturbances may come either from the plasma or from vibration of external sources.

micropit

A laser-induced scar on experimental bare glass surfaces usually attributable to threshold damage and indicative of isolated damage-susceptible areas in the glass.