Absorption - The process where the energy of a photon is taken up by another entity.

AIA - Abbreviation for Active Integration Antenna

Amplification - The conversion of one signal (often small in energy) to another signal (often larger in energy).

COMET - Abbreviation for Compact Microwave Energy Transmitter.

Corona - White or colored circles seen around a luminous body, such as the sun.

Diode - An electronic device that restricts current flow chiefly to one direction, containing an anode and a cathode.

Dipole - Any system or single object that is oppositely charged at two points, such as a magnet or a polar molecule.

Dispersion - Separation of a complex wave into its component parts according to a given characteristic, such as frequency or wavelength

Divergence - The process in which any system of energy, radiation, particles, or physical objects extend in different directions.

Dopants - An element, such as boron that is diffused into pure silicon in order to alter its electrical characteristics and make it more conductive.

Electromagnetic Spectrum - The complete range of the electromagnetic spectrum. From shortest wavelength to longest wavelength they are: Gamma Rays, x-rays, ultraviolet, visible light, infrared, microwaves, and radio waves.

3He - A Non-radioactive isotope of Helium containing two protons and one neutron.

ISM Band - Industry, Space, and Medical band.

Klystron - An electron tube used to amplify or generate ultrahigh frequency by means of velocity modulation.

Magnetron - A two-element vacuum tube in which the flow of electrons is under the influence of an external magnetic field, used to generate extremely short radio waves.

MASER - Short for Microwave Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A MASER amplifies electromagnetic waves into the spectrum of Microwaves by using the natural oscillation of atoms between energy levels.

Microwaves - An electromagnetic wave with wavelengths between one millimeter to one meter

Microwave Background Radiation - A form of electromagnetic radiation discovered in 1965 that fills the entire universe.

MINIX - Abbreviation for Microwave Ionosphere Nonlinear Interaction Experiment.

Morse Code -Morse code is a method of sending text messages by keying in a series of electronic pulses, usually represented as short pulses and long pulses.

Oscilloscope - Lab instrument in which variations of a fluctuating electrical quantity are momentarily seen as a visible waveform on a the fluorescent screen of cathode-ray tube.

Phased Array - The arrangement of dipole antennas so that the radiation pattern of the system is reinforced in the desired position and suppressed undesired positions.

Photon - The quantity of electromagnetic energy, regarded as a discrete particle having no mass, zero electric charge, and an indefinitely long lifespan.

Plasma - An ionized gas containing nearly the same amount of protons and neutrons. It is often referred to as the 4th state of matter. An example of plasma on Earth is lightning.

Rectenna - Abbreviation for Rectifying Antenna. It is an antenna that converts microwave energy to DC Electricity.

Rectifier - An electrical circuit used to convert AC into DC current.

RFID - Abbreviation for Radio Frequency Identification.

SBSP - Abbreviation for Spaced Based Solar Power.

Schottky-barrier Diode - A semiconductor diode formed by contact between a metal coating and a semiconductor layer, used in many processes that require the switching of power from high-voltage rectifiers

Semiconductor - A solid material having the properties of both a conductor and an insulator.

SHARP - Abbreviation for Stationary High Altitude Relay Platform.

Solar Flare - An eruption, often sudden, of hydrogen gas from the surface of the sun. Solar flares tend to be associated with sunspots, and radio interference

Spontaneous Emission - The process by which a light source in an excited state goes to the ground state and emits a photon.

SSP - Abbreviation for Space Solar Power

Stimulated Emission - The process by which matter may lose energy when emitting another photon

Superconductor - The ability to conduct electricity without having internal resistance.

Tesla Coil - A step-up transformer with an air core, used for producing high voltages at high frequencies, as for x-ray tubes.

Transmitter - An electronic device that generates and amplifies a carrier wave, modulates it with a meaningful signal derived from speech or other sources, and radiates the resulting signal from an antenna.

Waveguide - A hollow metal conductor used to channel microwaves, often used with radar.