Photonics Dictionary

A small mass spectrometer, with a limited mass range, equipped with an analyzer to generate a cycloidal-path beam of the sample.

A mass spectrometer utilizing both radial electrostatic and magnetic field analyzers to improve the focusing and increase resolution.

A small mass spectrometer used to find leaks in a vacuum system by detecting the presence of helium. Using a magnetic deflection device that is permanently tuned to helium, it is capable of detecting...

A spectroscopic technique in which an excitation band absorbs laser energy resulting in an electronic transition. The isotopic species may then be measured using a time of flight mass spectrometer....

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an analytical technique that uses a high-powered laser pulse to ablate a small amount of material from a sample, creating a plasma. This plasma emits...

Instrument that uses absorption spectroscopy to detect gases in planetary atmospheres. Dispersed incoming radiation is transmitted to one or more sampling elements, or masks, before reaching the...

A device used to measure the masses and relative concentrations of atoms and molecules. It utilizes the Lorentz force generated by external magnetic field on a moving charged particle, in which the...

A high-contrast transparency of the gas sought, or an array of exit slits that correlates with some features of the spectrum. No standardized formula for positioning, number or thickness has been...

A mass spectrometer used to detect ions formed by photo- and charge-exchange ionization of gases, such as those in the lunar atmosphere.

(SALI) A type of spectroscopy in which neutral atoms or molecules are ionized by an excimer laser beam and then measured by a time-of-flight mass spectrometer.

Time-resolved ultraviolet photodissociation mass spectrometry (TR-UV-PDMS) is a specialized analytical technique used in mass spectrometry to study the dynamics of chemical reactions, molecular...

A time-to-amplitude converter (TAC) is an electronic circuit that converts a time interval between two events into an amplitude or voltage signal. TACs are commonly used in various scientific and...

A magnetic-deflection mass spectrometer that has an electrostatic field placed perpendicularly to its magnetic field, permitting both spatial mass dispersion and perfect double focusing in the plane...