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Photonics is the science and technology of generating and controlling light, and, in particular, using light to carry information. The name is derived from the fundamental information carrier - the photon. The science and applications of photonics are usually based on laser light.
The science of photonics includes the emission, transmission, amplification, detection, modulation, and switching of light. List of photonic devices includes lasers, LEDs, fiber optics, and photonic crystals. Applications of photonics range from light detection to communications and information processing.
Photonics as a science is closely related to quantum optics with a somewhat unclear boundary: fundamental research tends to be called quantum optics, and photonics is rather application related research (especially such trying to establish an electronics with photons instead of electrons -- hence the name).
See also: Microphotonics
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