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Published on: November 30, 2012
Influence of the cavity parameters on the output intensity in incoherent broadband cavity-enhanced absorption
Sven E Fiedler1, Achim Hese, Uwe Heitmann
1Institut für Optik und Atomare Physik, Technische Universität Berlin, Hardenbergstrasse 36, 10623 Berlin, Germany. sven@kalium.physik.tu-berlin.de
Abstract:
The incoherent broadband cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy is a technique in measuring small absorptions over a broad wavelength range. The setup consists of a conventional absorption spectrometer using an incoherent lamp and a charge coupled device detector, as well as a linear optical cavity placed around the absorbing sample, which enhances the effective path length through the sample. In this work the consequences of cavity length, mirror curvature, reflectivity, different light injection geometries, and spot size of the light source on the output intensity are studied and the implications to the signal-to-noise ratio of the absorption measurement are discussed. The symmetric confocal resonator configuration is identified as a special case with optimum imaging characteristics but with higher requirements for mechanical stability. Larger spot sizes of the light source were found to be favorable in order to reduce the negative effects of aberrations on the intensity.
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