Measurement photodetector

As a result of these considerations, the primary difference between a spectrophotometer and a light-scattering photometer is the fact that the photodetector is mounted on an arm which pivots at the sample so that intensity measurements can be made at various angles. 

There are important figures of merit (5) that describe the performance of a photodetector. These are responsivity, noise, noise equivalent power, detectivity, and response time (2,6). However, there are several related parameters of measurement, eg, temperature of operation, bias power, spectral response, background photon flux, noise spectra, impedance, and linearity. Operational concerns include detector-element size, uniformity of response, array density, reflabiUty, cooling time, radiation tolerance, vibration and shock resistance, shelf life, availabiUty of arrays, and cost. 

Although photodetector noise (11) origiaates as random fluctuations of photons or electrical carriers, it is measured usiag the Fourier transform... 

Liquid scintillation counting is by far the most common method of detection and quantitation of -emission (12). This technique involves the conversion of the emitted P-radiation into light by a solution of a mixture of fluorescent materials or fluors, called the Hquid scintillation cocktail. The sensitive detection of this light is affected by a pair of matched photomultiplier tubes (see Photodetectors) in the dark chamber. This signal is amplified, measured, and recorded by the Hquid scintillation counter. Efficiencies of detection are typically 25—60% for tritium >90% for and P and... 

In photoluminescence one measures physical and chemical properties of materials by using photons to induce excited electronic states in the material system and analyzing the optical emission as these states relax. Typically, light is directed onto the sample for excitation, and the emitted luminescence is collected by a lens and passed through an optical spectrometer onto a photodetector. The spectral distribution and time dependence of the emission are related to electronic transition probabilities within the sample, and can be used to provide qualitative and, sometimes, quantitative information about chemical composition, structure (bonding, disorder, interfaces, quantum wells), impurities, kinetic processes, and energy transfer. 

Fig. 69. Schematic of the optical train for birefringence measure ments. For microphotographs, an instant camera replaced the photodetector...

I will present here the properties of various sources when the random variable considered is the field intensity. In this case, one has access to the mean and variance via a simple photodetector. The autocorrelation function can be interpreted as the probability of detecting one photon at time t + t when one photon has been detected at time t. The measurement is done using a pair of photodetectors in a start stop arrangement (Kimble et al., 1977). The system is usually considered stationary so that the autocorrelation function, which is denoted depends only on r and is defined by ... 

Optical emision spectra nowadays are simply measured using a fiber optic cable that directs the plasma light to a monochromator, which is coupled to a photodetector. By rotating the prism in the monochromator a wavelength scan of the emitted light can be obtained. Alternatively, an optical multichannel analyzer can be used to record (parts of) an emission spectrum simultaneously, allowing for much faster acquisition. A spectrometer resolution of about 0.1 nm is needed to identify species. 

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