Absorption spectra Scattered radiation

In the diffuse reflectance mode, samples can be measured as loose powders, with the advantages that not only is the tedious preparation of wafers unnecessary but also diffusion limitations associated with tightly pressed samples are avoided. Diffuse reflectance is also the indicated technique for strongly scattering or absorbing particles. The often-used acronyms DRIFT or DRIFTS stand for diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. The diffusely scattered radiation is collected by an ellipsoidal mirror and focussed on the detector. The infrared absorption spectrum is described the Kubelka-Munk function ... 

Particle size of the sample has got to be reduced below 200 mesh or 3 pm so as to avoid scattering of radiation thereby causing poor absorption spectrum. 

Extinction and absorption spectra for 0.01 jum particles with optical constants appropriate to radiation-damaged MgO (see Fig. 10.1) are also shown in Fig. 11.2. The lowest-energy absorption band among the three broad bands shows clearly in extinction but not the highest-energy band. In this instance obscuration of structure is caused by the dominance of scattering over absorption, not saturation of absorption. This is obvious from the absorption spectrum, in which all three bands are evident. To observe the band at 3.5 eV... 

Not all vibrations and rotations are infrared-active. If there is no change in dipole moment, then there is no oscillating electric field in the motion, and there is no mechanism by which absorption of electromagnetic radiation can take place. An oscillation, or vibration, about a center of symmetry, therefore, will not be observed in the infrared spectrum (absorption) but can be observed in the Raman spectrum (scattering). 

Spectroelectrochemistry, reflection mode — The interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter (-> spectroscopy) may occur by absorption or scattering when radiation impinges on matter or passes through matter. In the latter case (transmission mode) the radiation before and after passage is evaluated in order to obtain the desired spectrum. In studies of opaque materials or of surfaces interacting with matter inside the (bulk)... 

Light (or near-ir and uv radiation) that is incident on opaque minerals is partly absorbed and partly reflected by them. There are two kinds of reflection processes that occurring when light is reflected from a flat polished surface of the mineral (specular reflectance) and that occurring when the light is reflected from the mineral after it has been finely powdered (diffuse reflectance). The latter arises from radiation that has penetrated the crystals (as in an electronic absorption spectrum) and reappeared at the surface after multiple scatterings in this case there will also be a specular component to the reflectance from light that is reflected from the surfaces of the particles. The specular reflectance of a flat polished surface of an opaque mineral measured at normal incidence can be related to the n and k terms of the complex refractive index (N) in which ... 

Analytical applications have been found for all parts of the electromagnetic spectrum ranging from microwaves through visible radiation to gamma (y) rays (Table 1). The emission and absorption of electromagnetic radiation are specific to atomic and molecular processes and provide the basis for sensitive and rapid methods of analysis. There are two general analytical approaches. In one, the sample is the source of the radiation in the other, there is an external source and the absorption or scattering of radiation by the sample is measured. Emission from the sample may be spontaneous, as in radioactive decay, or stimulated by thermal or other means, as in flame photometry and fluorimetry. Both approaches can be used to provide qualitative and quantitative information about the atoms present in, or the molecular structure of, the sample. 

The measurement of diffuse reflectance effectively involves focusing the infrared source beam onto the surface of a powder sample and using an integrating sphere to collect the scattered infrared radiation.59 The technique requires careful attention to sample preparation, and often one must dilute the analyte with KBr powder to reduce the occurrence of anomalous effects.60 In practice, one obtains the spectrum of the finely ground KBr dispersant, and then ratios this to the spectrum of KBr containing the analyte. The relative reflectance spectrum is converted into Kubelka-Munk units using standard equations,61 thus obtaining a diffuse reflectance spectrum that resembles a conventional IR absorption spectrum. 

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