Ring resonant cavities for spectroscopy

US5912740A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University · US

Inventors

• Richard N. Zare · Stanford, US
• Juergen Martin · Singen, DE
• Barbara Paldus · Atherton, US
• Jinchun Xie · Cupertino, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 20, 1997
• Grant date: Jun 15, 1999
• Expiry date: Jun 20, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01J3/42
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Ring-shaped resonant cavities for spectroscopy allow a reduction in optical feedback to the light source, and provide information on the interaction of both s- and p-polarized light with samples. A laser light source is locked to a single cavity mode. An intracavity acousto-optic modulator may be used to couple light into the cavity. The cavity geometry is particularly useful for Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy (CRDS).