Time rapid-scan

There are two common occasions when rapid measurement is preferable. The first is with ionization sources using laser desorption or radionuclides. A pulse of ions is produced in a very short interval of time, often of the order of a few nanoseconds. If the mass spectrometer takes 1 sec to attempt to scan the range of ions produced, then clearly there will be no ions left by the time the scan has completed more than a few nanoseconds (ion traps excluded). If a point ion detector were to be used for this type of pulsed ionization, then after the beginning of the scan no more ions would reach the collector because there would not be any left The array collector overcomes this difficulty by detecting the ions produced all at the same instant. 

Experimental limitations initially limited the types of molecular systems that could be studied by TRIR spectroscopy. The main obstacles were the lack of readily tunable intense IR sources and sensitive fast IR detectors. Early TRIR work focused on gas phase studies because long pathlengths and/or multipass cells could be used without interference from solvent IR bands. Pimentel and co-workers first developed a rapid scan dispersive IR spectrometer (using a carbon arc broadband IR source) with time and spectral resolution on the order of 10 ps and 1 cm , respectively, and reported the gas phase IR spectra of a number of fundamental organic intermediates (e.g., CH3, CD3, and Cp2). Subsequent gas phase approaches with improved time and spectral resolution took advantage of pulsed IR sources. 

Since modern FTIR spectrometers can operate in a rapid scan mode with approximately 50 ms time resolution, TRIR experiments in the millisecond time regime are readily available. Recent advances in ultra-rapid scanning FTIR spectroscopy have improved the obtainable time resolution to 5 ms. Alternatively, experiments can be performed at time resolutions on the order of 1-10 ms with the planar array IR technique, which utilizes a spectrograph for wavelength dispersion and an IR focal plane detector for simultaneous detection of multiple wavelengths. ... 

Rapid scanning mass spectrometers providing unit resolution are routinely used as chroaatographic detectors. Ion separation is accomplished using either a magnetic sector, quadrupole filter or ion trap device. Ions can also be separated by time-of-flight or ion cyclotron resonance mass analyzers but these devices are not widely used with chromatograidiic inlets and will not be discussed here [20]. 

A modern variation on the rapid scan spectrometer, which is under development, uses a laser-generated plasma as a high intensity broad-band IR source (65). This method has been used to probe the vc—o absorption of W(CO)6. Another technique TRISP (time-resolved IR spectral photography), which involves up-conversion of IR radiation to the visible, has also been used to probe transients (66). This method has the enormous advantage that efficient phototubes and photodiodes can be used as detectors. However, it is a technically challenging procedure with limitations on the frequency range which depend on the optical material used as an up-converter. 

Both Porter s original flash photolysis apparatus and Pimentel s rapid scan spectrometer recorded the whole spectral region in a time which was short compared to the decay of the transient species. Kinetic information was obtained by repeatedly firing the photolytic flash lamp and making each spectroscopic measurement at a different time delay after each flash. The decay rate could then be extracted from this series of delayed spectra. Such a process clearly has limitations, particularly for IR measurements, where the decay must be slow compared to the scan rate of the spectrum. 

As early GC peaks elute in a few seconds or less, rapid scanning of the mass range of interest is necessary. Fast scanning also allows partially resolved GC peaks to be sampled several times,peak slicing, to facilitate identification of the individual components (Figure 12.5) provided that the dead volume of the interface is small compared to peak volumes. For the speedy interpretation of spectral data from complex chromatograms a... 

The most controversial issue is the number and exact stoichiometries of the iron(III)-sulfito complexes formed under different experimental conditions. Earlier, van Eldik and co-workers reported the formation of a series of [Fe(SO ) ]3-2" (n = to 3) complexes and the [Fe(S03)(0H)] complex (89,91,92). The stability constants of these species were determined by evaluating time resolved rapid-scan spectra obtained from the sub-second to several minutes time domain. The cis-trans isomerization of the complexes was also considered, under feasible circumstances. In contrast, Betterton interpreted his results assuming the formation and linkage isomerization of a single complex, [Fe(SC>3)]+ (93). In agreement with the latter results, Conklin and Hoffmann also found evidence only for the formation of a mono-complex (94). However, their results were criticized on the basis that the experiments were made in 1.0 M formic acid/formate buffer where iron(III) existed mainly as formato complex(es). Although these reactions could interfere with the formation of the sulfito complex, they were not considered in the evaluation of the results (95). Finally, van Eldik and co-workers re-examined the complex-formation reactions and presented additional data in support of... 

Figure 4. Vidicon rapid scan UV-visible spectral changes on the addition of acid to Ni(III)(H.sG4a), corresponding to the coordination changes in Figure 2. Absorbance decreases with time for spectra recorded at 0.02, 0.09, 0.16, 0.23, 0.30, 0.37,...

F. V. Bright and G. M. Hieftje, Rapid-scanning frequency domain fluorometer with picosecond time resolution, Applied Optics 26, 3526-3529 (1987). 

As might be expected, the problem of obtaining spectra of a reacting system increases as the time resolution involved decreases. The spectral changes associated with a reaction may be constructed by wavelength point-by-point measurements. The method, although tedious and costly on materials, is still used. However rapid-scan spectrophotometry, linked to stopped-flow, is now more readily available and reliable. Two systems are used, shown schematically in (3.29) and (3.30). An example of its use is shown in Fig. 3.9. Rapid scan... 

Similarly, the spectrum of a mixture of Fe(tpps)H20 and Fe(tpps)(OH) can be measured by rapid scan/stopped-flow at various pH s within a few milliseconds after generation (Fig. 3.9). In this short time, dimerization is unimportant so that the spectrum of Fe(tpps)OH can be measured and the pAi of Fe(tpps)H20 estimated. 

For visual observation of the cell interior through the sapphire windows a lamp mounted behind one end is used. A mirror and stereo microscope at the other end facilitate the observation. The microscope is equipped with a normal camera or a video camera. Normally the phenomena within the cell are continuously observed and controlled with video camera and colour monitor. A video recorder serves for documentation, for inspection of short time processes and for the production of standing flame pictures for size and shape determination. Instead of the microscope a Jarrell-Ash diode array rapid scan spectrometer can be attached to the cell to obtain flame spectra in the visible and UV-regions. 

Fig, 1 Time series of spectra taken immediately after bleaching the purple membrane with white light with a rapid scanning photometer. The lower spectrum represents a filter spectrum for calibration. (Courtesy of Eur. J. Biochem.)... 

Wt-GFP was expressed in E. coli and purified as described in Ref. [4]. Time- and frequency resolved pump-probe transients were recorded with 40-fs, 400-nm excitation pulses and probe pulses with durations of approximately 40 fs throughout the visible spectral range. Since photo-conversion strongly alters the GFP response, rapid scan data acquisition was performed... 

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