A method of resolving a number of photons received by a photon detector includes optically coupling a waveguide to a superconducting wire having alternating narrow and wide portions; electrically coupling the superconducting wire to a current source; and electrically coupling an electrical contact in parallel with the superconducting wire. The electrical contact has a resistance less than a resistance of the superconducting wire while at least one narrow portion of the superconducting wire is in a non-superconducting state. The method includes providing to the superconducting wire, from the current source, a current configured to maintain the superconducting wire in a superconducting state in the absence of incident photons; receiving one or more photons via the waveguide; measuring an electrical property of the superconducting wire, proportional to a number of photons incident on the superconducting wire; and determining the number of received photons based on the electrical property.

A sensor apparatus for detecting the wetness of window, with a radiation emitter and a radiation receiver, with an optical guide element which can be coupled to the inner side of the window, the radiation inlet side and the radiation outlet side of the guide element are each embodied as a lens arrangement, and a lens arrangement is embodied by lens contours arranged side by side. The lens arrangement on the radiation inlet side has at least two lens contours. The inlet surfaces of the lens contours on the radiation inlet side, through which the radiation is able to enter the guide element, are inclined towards each other. The lens arrangement on the radiation outlet side has at least two lens contours. The outlet surfaces of the lens contours on the radiation outlet side, through which the radiation can exit the guide element, are inclined towards each other.

A near-infrared sensor cover includes a cover body having transmissiveness to near-infrared rays. The cover body includes a base and a heater unit. The heater unit is arranged rearward of the base in a transmission direction of the near-infrared rays and includes a wire-like heating element. The heating element is configured to generate heat when energized. The base includes a rear portion that includes a rear surface of the base in the transmission direction. In the rear portion of the base, at least part of a section that is different from a section in which the heater unit is provided is formed by a reflection suppression structure including asperities. The asperities include a reflection suppression surface that is inclined relative to the transmission direction and reduces reflection of the near-infrared rays.

An infrared sensor cover includes a decorative layer, a transparent first base, and a transparent second base. The decorative layer includes a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface. The first base is made of a resin molded body and disposed on the first surface of the decorative layer. The second base is made of a resin molded body and disposed on the second surface of the decorative layer. An absolute value of a difference between refractive indices of a first resin material of the first base and a second resin material of the second base is less than or equal to 0.05. An absolute value of a difference between heat deflection temperatures of the first resin material and the second resin material is greater than or equal to 15 degrees.

This optical device includes at least one magnetic element including a first ferromagnetic layer, a second ferromagnetic layer, and a spacer layer sandwiched between the first ferromagnetic layer and the second ferromagnetic layer, a laser diode, and a waveguide, in which the waveguide includes at least one input waveguide optically connected to the laser diode and an output waveguide connected to the input waveguide, and at least some of light propagating in at least one of the input waveguide and the output waveguide is applied to the magnetic element.

An optical sensing device includes a substrate, a sensing element layer, a first planarization layer, and a second planarization layer. The sensing element layer is located on the substrate and includes a plurality of sensing elements. The first planarization layer is located on the sensing element layer and has a first slit. The second planarization layer is located on the first planarization layer and has a second slit. An orthogonal projection of the first slit extending in a direction and located on the substrate is not overlapped with an orthogonal projection of the second slit extending in the same direction and located on the substrate, and the orthogonal projection of the second slit on the substrate has a curved pattern.

A combination imaging system includes a housing having a base and a lid, the lid having a closed position against the base and having an open position. The imaging device further includes a contact area image sensor. The lid shields the contact area image sensor from ambient light when the lid is in the closed position. The imaging device also includes a camera. The camera includes a lens, and the field of view of the camera encompasses at least a portion of an imaging area of the contact area image sensor when the lid is in the open position. The device may be especially useful for capturing a chemiluminescent image of an electrophoretic assay result, and capturing a colorimetric image of the same result, so that non-chemiluminescent protein standards may be located with respect to chemiluminescent analytes of interest.

A superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD) device includes a substrate having a top surface, an optical waveguide on the top surface of the substrate to receive light propagating substantially parallel to the top surface of the substrate, a seed layer of metal nitride on the optical waveguide, and a superconductive wire on the seed layer. The superconductive wire is a metal nitride different from the metal nitride of the seed layer and is optically coupled to the optical waveguide.

A method for detecting emitted light from a display screen with a simple configuration and procedure without changing the position of the sensor. A method for detecting emitted light from a display screen of a display apparatus, including: a placement step of placing a photometric part including an optical sensor and a light guide member on a front surface side of the display screen, and a detection step of turning on any area of the display screen, guiding the emitted light from the area to the optical sensor by the light guide member, and detecting the emitted light with the optical sensor without changing the position of the optical sensor.

The present invention relates to a method for collecting sunlight through an image method by tracking the sun using a dish-shaped light collector or a paraboloidal light collector and, and to a method and an apparatus for transmitting high-density light as the collected sunlight to a remote place, to which the light is applied, and for generating super-high-density light by combining, in a multi-stage manner, the high-density light obtained through a plurality of light collectors. A first concaveparaboloidal reflector of a paraboloidal light collection unit can collect light, transmit the collected light to the remote place, and provide an efficient and quantitative use environment to an applied device by using a paraboloidal reflector set including: a first concave-paraboloidal mirror in which a slope of a paraboloide is provided to make a narrow width so that downward reflection is greater than or equal to 90% by an angle between an incident angle at an inner point of a paraboloidal mirror and a normal surface, the angle being larger than a critical angle, and which has an opening formed at the lower side of a central axis thereof; and a second convex-paraboloidal reflector, which has a small diameter, shares a focus of the first concave-paraboloidal mirror, and has a miniaturized shape of the first concave-paraboloidal mirror at a focal portion without an opening at a central axis thereof.