pho·to·di·ode | \ ˌfō-tō-ˈdī-ˌōd 
\
\Definition of photodiode
: a photoelectric semiconductor device for detecting and often measuring radiant energy (such as light)
Examples of photodiode in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web When the robot finger touches an object, its soft exterior deforms, and the photodiodes in the skeleton detect changing light levels from the LEDs.
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Matt Simon, Wired, "This Clever Robotic Finger Feels With Light," 26 Feb. 2020 His team is now working to shrink the photodiodes—creating finer pixels and sharper vision—without losing too much signal strength.
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Kelly Servick, Science | AAAS, "New technologies promise sharper artificial vision for blind people," 31 Oct. 2019 The photodiode signal controls the brightness of a second light source.
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Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Humans can perform ghost imaging, no computer required," 4 Sep. 2018 The photon that bounced off the object would hit a photodiode (essentially a single pixel detector).
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Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Humans can perform ghost imaging, no computer required," 4 Sep. 2018 Star gazing 1922: Professor Joel Stebbins attaches what is called a photodiode to the Washburn Observatory’s 15-inch telescope to measure and track stars.
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Mark Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "UW scientific advances include vitamins, growing human embryonic stem cells in lab," 12 July 2018 The lasers have slightly different pulse repetition frequencies, so over time, the output of the photodiode oscillates from producing two signals to producing four and back again.
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Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Lidar system images bullet in flight," 30 Mar. 2018 The simplest part of the system is probably the laser measurement system, which only requires a laser with very high polarization purity and five photodiodes, all mounted on a very, very stable table.
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Chris Lee, Ars Technica, "Negative mass swing beats the uncertainty principle," 1 Aug. 2017 For solar power, the device uses a tiny (1 cm square) photodiode.
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Maya Wei-haas, Smithsonian, "You’d Never Have to Plug in This Battery-Free Cell Phone," 20 July 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'photodiode.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for photodiode
The first known use of photodiode was in 1945
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