'Frequency comb' spectroscopy proves to be powerful chemical analysis tool

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The new JILA technique uses infrared laser light in many different colors or frequencies to identify trace levels of different molecules at the same time. For example water molecules (blue) and ammonia molecules (green) absorb light at very specific ...
The new JILA technique uses infrared laser light in many different colors, or frequencies, to identify trace levels of different molecules at the same time. For example, water molecules (blue) and ammonia molecules (green) absorb light at very specific characteristic frequencies. The pattern of frequencies absorbed forms a "signature" for identifying the molecules and their concentrations.

Physicists at JILA have designed and demonstrated a highly sensitive new tool for real-time analysis of the quantity, structure and dynamics of a variety of atoms and molecules simultaneously, even in minuscule gas samples. The technology could provide unprecedented capabilities in many settings, such as chemistry laboratories, environmental monitoring stations, security sites screening for explosives or biochemical weapons, and medical offices where patients' breath is analyzed to monitor disease.


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