Random access spectrometer

Figure 4. Block diagram of computer controlled random access spectrometer (2)...

There are several advantages to a tunable filter system. First, it is unnecessary to have a multichannel detector (for single-point measurements), since only one wavelength is being selected at a time. The size of the detector is also much more flexible, since spectral resolution of the system is not a function of the detector and input aperture as it is in a classical monochromotor, but rather limited only by the functional characteristics of the filter. Second, since focusing and dispersive elements are minimized the spectrometer could be made very small. Third, the entire spectrum does not need to be obtained the random access nature of the filter allows only the spectral features required for a measurement to be made. This can be a significant advantage for routine measurements. 

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