Spectroscopic facilities and capabilities
C-TAPE has always had the development of spectroscopic capabilities to support planetary exploration as its main focus. Below we describe our major spectroscopic instruments and their capabilities:
- Bruker Vertex 70 FTIR and Hyperion microscope,
- Buck M5000 infrared spectrometer,
- ASD FieldSpec Pro HR spectrometer,
- Designs & Prototypes 102F FTIR spectrometer,
- Ocean Optics Maya200 Pro spectrometer,
- Delta Nu Rockhound Raman spectrometer,
- BWTek iRaman Raman spectrometer,
- Hyperspectral imagers.
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1. Bruker Vertex 70 FTIR and Hyperion microscope
The laboratory is equipped with a Bruker Vertex 70 model FTIR spectrometer coupled to a
Hyperion model 2000 microscope spectrometer system.
Vertex 70 FTIR
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The Vertex 70 and Hyperion systems have been custom-configured to allow operations to as low as 400 nm (25,000 cm-1). The accessible wavelength range of the Vertex 70 system is 400 nm to 50000 nm (25,000 - 200 cm-1) through various combinations of interchangeable and fixed detectors, beamsplitters, and windows. Spectral resolution can be varied and can be set as low as 0.5 cm-1. Improvements in signal to noise are possible by varying scan speeds (integration time) and numbers of spectra acquired. |
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As with most FTIR instruments, the Vertex 70 was designed primarily to enable transmission spectroscopic measurements. We have adapted the sample compartment to enable bidirectional/biconical reflectance measurements in a controlled atmosphere using two accessories:
- A Specac bidirectional reflectance accessory that allows for independent setting of both incidence and emission angles,
- A Pike EasiDiff reflectance accessory that provides fixed 30°/30° viewing geometry.
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Hyperion microscope
The Hyperion 2000 microspectroscopy accessory provides wavelength coverage from 400 nm to 22,000 nm (25,000 - 454 cm-1). It is equipped with various accessories and add-ons that enable acquisition of transmission or reflectance data, fluorescence, polarization, and attenuated total reflectance (using a germanium crystal). An interfaced video camera allows for sample viewing and image documentation. The Hyperion is also equipped with a motorized XYZ stage that enables hyperspectral sample mapping (the Hyperion uses a single element detector for acquiring point spectra, and the programmable XYZ stage allows for two-dimensional spectral mapping).
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2. Buck M5000 infrared spectrometer
C-TAPE is equipped with a Buck M5000 infrared spectrometer. The M5000 is a grating-scanning instrument. This unit provides wavelength coverage from 2500 nm to 16,666 nm (4000 - 600 cm-1) with spectral resolution as high as 2 cm-1. The spectrometer can accommodate reflectance accessories for the acquisition of high-resolution reflectance spectra. The instrument is programmable in terms of scan speed and spectral resolution to enable improvements in signal to noise.
3. ASD FieldSpec Pro HR spectrometer
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The Analytical Spectral Devices (ASD) FieldSpecPro HR spectrometer is a fibre optic-equipped field-portable unit capable of spectral acquisitions from 350 to 2500 nm utilizing a silicon array detector (350-1000 nm) and two Peltier-cooled graded-index InGaAs photodiodes (SWIR1: 1000-1830 nm, SWIR2: 1830-2500 nm). Spectral resolution ranges between 3 and 7 nm and the instrument has a step size of 1.4 nm, but the data are internally resampled by the instrument to ultimately output the data at 1 nm intervals. Interchangeable fibre optic options include a fibre bundle for near-normal simultaneous illumination and reflectance measurements or with use with a stand-alone light source. The instrument is capable of acquiring reflectance, fluorescence, and transmittance spectra. A range of additional ASD accessories is also available for different types of reflectance measurements. |
4. Designs & Prototypes 102F FTIR spectrometer
The Designs & Prototypes 102F field-portable FTIR spectrometer provides spectral coverage from 2000 to 16,666 nm (5000-600 cm-1) with 6 cm-1 spectral resolution. It uses fixed but pointable optics for reflectance/emission measurements. It is field-portable and can operate using battery power. It is also equipped with an integratable black body source.
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5. Ocean Optics Maya200 Pro spectrometer
| The Ocean Optics Maya2000 Pro is a miniaturized spectrometer covering the wavelength range of 200 – 1100 nm. Equipped with an HC-1 grating and a 30 μm slit, the effective spectral resolution ranges between 0.48 nm at 200 nm and 0.46 nm at 400 – 1100 nm. The detector is a 2D back-thinned linear CCD-array. The Ocean Optics instrument can be fitted with a variety of fiber optic bundles that allow for near-normal incidence and illumination (using bifurcated fiber optic bundles) or bidirectional measurements using two separate fiber optic cables. It can also be used in conjunction with various ASD reflectance accessories. |  |
6. Delta Nu Rockhound Raman spectrometer
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The Delta Nu Rockhound spectrometer is intended for the acquisition of point Raman spectra in the laboratory or in the field (operating on battery power). This instrument uses a thermoelectrically cooled (0°C) CCD detector coupled with excitation of 100mW at 785 nm provided by a solid-state diode laser filtered by a long pass OD6 notch. Laser power is adjustable within the software to low, medium, high settings. Its spectral range is 5000 to 50,000 nm (2000 - 200 cm-1), with 8 cm-1 spectral resolution. Spectrometer operation is controlled by a notebook computer, allowing for full off-site operation. A variety of accessories allow for data acquisition in a number of different configurations. |
7. BWTek iRaman Raman spectrometer
The B&W Tek i-Raman® is a 532 nm high-resolution field-portable Raman spectrometer with an interfaceable microscope and video camera for micro-Raman spectroscopy. It combines laser stabilization and narrow linewidth. The instrument houses a thermal electrically cooled (14°C) 2048 pixel CCD linear array detector. The effective resolution of the instrument is ~4cm-1 at 614 nm. It utilizes a stabilized 532 nm laser excitation source at ~ 50 mW. The detection range is 175 - 4000 cm-1.
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8. Hyperspectral imagers
C-TAPE is equipped with three hyperspectral imagers, each covering a specific wavelength range. All three units are field-portable and can be tripod-mounted but require a 120 V power source. The SWIR imager can also be mounted on a custom-built copystand. A variety of light sources and reflectance standards are available for spectral imaging.
