Tunable light source for use in photoacoustic spectrometers
US6975402B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 19, 2002 |
| Grant date | Dec 13, 2005 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 11, 2023 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04R25/505
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
The present invention provides a photoacoustic spectrometer that is field portable and capable of speciating complex organic molecules in the gas phase. The spectrometer has a tunable light source that has the ability to resolve the fine structure of these molecules over a large wavelength range. The inventive light source includes an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) having combined fine and coarse tuning. By pumping the OPO with the output from a doped-fiber optical amplifier pumped by a diode seed laser, the inventive spectrometer is able to speciate mixtures having parts per billion of organic compounds, with a light source that has a high efficiency and small size, allowing for portability. In an alternative embodiment, the spectrometer is scanned by controlling the laser wavelength, thus resulting in an even more compact and efficient design.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.