Scientific Glossary
- Quantum dot: An object that confines electrons in all three dimensions.
- Quantum interference: Superposition of two (or more) wave functions governed by the laws of quantum mechanics.
- Quantum mechanical tunneling: Transitioning of a wave function through a classically forbidden energy state.
- Quantum mechanics: Branch of theoretical physics explaining the behavior of matter at atomic and subatomic levels.
- Quantum optics: Research field that applies the insights of quantum mechanics to the interactions of light with matter.
- Quantum well: Layers between two confining energy barriers that are so thin that the motion perpendicular to the layer is quantized.
- Quasar: Luminous, ancient, and far away astronomical objects whose tremendous energy output is thought to be powered by accretion of material onto supermassive black holes at the heart of the universe's most distant galaxies.
- Quasi phase matching: Use of optical fiber to periodically vary laser intensity so that short-wavelength light is generated only in fiber sections where it interferes constructively with itself.