Glossary
Glossary
- This page is pending English translation.
Optical Basics
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Refractive Index (n) | Dimensionless number describing the speed of light in a material; higher values indicate slower light propagation relative to vacuum. |
| Extinction Coefficient (k) | Measures how strongly a material absorbs light; the imaginary part of the complex refractive index. |
| Wavelength (λ) | Distance between adjacent wave peaks, typically measured in nanometers (nm). |
| Reflectance (R) | Fraction of incident light power reflected by a surface, expressed as a percentage (0–100%) or ratio (0–1). |
| Transmittance (T) | Fraction of incident light power transmitted through a material. |
| Absorbance (A) | Fraction of incident light power absorbed by a material. Satisfies R + T + A = 1. |
| Polarization | The orientation of the light electric field. S (TE) and P (TM) polarizations are orthogonal states. |
Film Stack Structure
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Thin Film | A layer of material with thickness ranging from a few nanometers to several micrometers. |
| Film Stack | A sequence of multiple thin-film layers deposited on a substrate in a specific order. |
| Substrate | The base material (often glass) on which films are deposited. |
| Incident Medium | The medium from which light is incident on the film stack (usually air). |
| Exit Medium | The medium into which light exits the film stack (usually air). |
| Front Stack | The layers deposited on the front side of the substrate. |
| Back Stack | The layers deposited on the back side of the substrate. |
| Layer Thickness | Physical thickness of a single film layer, measured in nanometers (nm). |
| Optical Thickness | Physical thickness multiplied by refractive index: n × d. |
Spectrum Calculation
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Spectrum Type | Type of spectrum to compute (e.g., reflectance or transmittance). |
| Stack Scope | Defines which part of the film stack is included in the calculation: FrontDesign, BackDesign, or WholeStack. |
| Incident Side | Indicates whether light is incident from the front (forward) or back (backward) side. |
| Forward Calculation | Calculation where light enters from the incident medium side. |
| Backward Calculation | Calculation where light enters from the opposite side. |
| Transfer Matrix Method (TMM) | Mathematical method for computing optical properties of multilayer thin-film stacks. |
Color Calculation
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| CIE Lab* | CIE Lab color space defined by the International Commission on Illumination (CIE), designed for perceptual uniformity. |
| CIE XYZ | CIE XYZ tristimulus values — a foundational color space from which others are derived. |
| Chromaticity (x, y) | Two-dimensional color coordinates excluding luminance. |
| Illuminant | Standard light source used in color calculations (e.g., D65, C, A). |
| Observer | Standard observer angle used in color computations (2° or 10°). |
| Color Target | Desired color goal used during optimization. |
| Color Difference (ΔE) | Metric quantifying perceived difference between two colors. |
Optimization
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Merit Function | A scalar function quantifying how close the current design is to the target; lower is better. |
| Chi-squared (χ²) | Sum of squared residuals, commonly used as a merit function. |
| Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) | A gradient-based optimization algorithm combining Gauss-Newton and gradient descent. |
| Simplex | A derivative-free optimization method using a geometric simplex. |
| Simulated Annealing (SA) | A probabilistic global optimization technique inspired by metallurgical annealing. |
| Differential Evolution (DE) | A population-based evolutionary algorithm using vector differences for mutation. |
| Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) | A swarm-intelligence optimization algorithm inspired by ant foraging behavior. |
| Jacobian Matrix | Matrix of partial derivatives used in gradient-based optimization. |
Thin Film Design
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Development | The process of designing a film stack to meet spectral or color targets. |
| Reverse Engineering | Inferring layer thicknesses from measured spectral data. |
| Index Fitting | Determining material optical constants (n, k) from measured spectra. |
| Spectrum Target | The spectral curve the optimizer attempts to reach. |
| Dispersion Model | Mathematical model describing how refractive index varies with wavelength (e.g., Cauchy, Sellmeier, Lorentz). |
Process Control
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Rate Factor | Calibration parameter adjusting deposition rates for each source. |
| Uniformity | Consistency of film thickness across the substrate area. |
| Coating Line | Industrial equipment setup for continuous coating on large glass substrates. |
| Low-E Glass | Low-emissivity glass with coatings that reduce heat transfer and meet specific optical requirements. |
User & Database
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| User | An account registered in the software, including username, password and associations to employee records and roles. The system uses an internal ID to uniquely identify users; usernames may be duplicated but internal IDs are unique. |
| Internal ID | System-assigned unique identifier for a user or role used to link records in the database. Recreating a username produces a different internal ID and prior associations cannot be recovered by name alone. |
| Local Database (Client) | Database stored on the client machine, suitable for single-machine use or as a sync target. It is affected by machine failures and should be backed up regularly. |
| Remote Database (Server) | Centralized database hosted on a network server supporting multi-user collaboration; dependent on network connectivity and authorization. In some licensing scenarios the server may be hosted locally. |
| Primary Database | The currently selected database (local or remote) used for read/write operations in the UI. Switching the primary database changes where subsequent create/update/delete actions are applied. |
| Synchronization | Process of transferring users, roles and business data between local and remote databases. Synchronization may run in either direction (remote→local or local→remote); conflict resolution should follow administrator policies. |
| Role | Entity grouping permissions. Roles have internal IDs; deleting a role affects users assigned to it and is difficult to undo. Prefer disabling or editing roles rather than deleting when possible. |
| Disable | Recommended alternative to deletion. Disabling a user or role prevents login or access while preserving historical data and associations for recovery and audit. |
| Login Remote Server | When the "Login Remote Server" option is selected, the system uses configured remote credentials to authenticate against the remote database. |
| Backup | Regular copies of local or remote database files to prevent data loss. Document backup locations, schedules and recovery steps for administrators. |
References
- CIE (International Commission on Illumination)
- Optical Thin Films (Macleod, H.A.): A comprehensive reference book on thin-film optics.
- ISO 9050: Standard for measuring optical properties and solar transmittance of glass.