Optoelectronics

Optoelectronics studies and uses devices that convert, detect, control, or transmit signals between light and electricity.

Light-emitting diode: A semiconductor device that emits light when electrical current passes through it. It converts electrical energy directly into light through electron–hole recombination.
Semiconductor: A material whose electrical conductivity lies between that of a conductor and an insulator and can be controlled. Semiconductor behavior provides the charge control behind most electronic light sources and detectors.
Fiber-optic communication: The transmission of information as light pulses through optical fibers. It combines optical sources, fiber links, and photodetectors to carry data.
Microelectronics: The design and fabrication of very small electronic components and circuits. It processes electrical signals without necessarily generating, detecting, or controlling light.
Photodiode: A semiconductor device that converts incident light into electrical current or voltage. It performs the reverse conversion, turning detected photons into an electrical signal.
Band gap: The energy range separating a solid's valence band from its conduction band. Its size helps determine which photon energies a semiconductor can emit or absorb.
Image sensor: An electronic device that converts an optical image into electrical signals. Its photodetectors make optoelectronic conversion the basis of digital imaging.
Photonics: The science and technology of generating, manipulating, and detecting light. It overlaps strongly with optoelectronics but also includes optical systems without electrical conversion.
Laser diode: A semiconductor device that produces coherent light through stimulated emission. It supplies compact, electrically driven laser light for communication and sensing.
Photon: A quantum of electromagnetic radiation that carries energy and momentum. Photon energy links optical wavelength to electronic transitions in device materials.

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