A sharp eye for molecular fingerprints: Broad absorption spectra recorded on microsecond scale with two laser frequency combs
Saturday, March 1, 2014 - 02:02
in Physics & Chemistry
Scientists have developed a new method of real-time identification and quantification of molecular species. How to retrieve greenhouse gas concentrations in earth atmosphere or to test fundamental laws of quantum mechanics? By measuring the spectrum of light interacting with matter, i.e. measuring the intensity of light transmitted through a medium as a function of its color, it can be done. Each molecule leaves its fingerprint: characteristic absorptions, which make it possible to unambiguously identify it and measure its concentration.