FTIR: Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (Under Development)
In 1824, Joseph Fourier hypothesized that the earth's atmosphere trapped some of the sun's heat and in 1837 speculated that human activity could affect the climate. The effect that atmospheric composition has on solar heat absorption was first measured by Eunice Newton Foote in 1856 and by John Tyndal in 1859. In 1896, Svante Arrhenius developed the first detailed model for the earth's "greenhouse effect".
Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy is a primary tool for measuring the atmospheric properties relevant to climate change, using ground-based, balloon, and satellite FTIR spectrometers. The primary goal of this experiment is to study the spectra and line-shapes of atmospheric gases at different pressures and temperatures. FTIR is also widely used in materials, nano, biological, forensic, and pharmaceutical sciences.
This experiment is primarily intended to study gases relevant to climate change, measuring their infrared absorption spectra at various temperatures and pressures. The apparatus can also make Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) FTIR measurements of liquids and solids.
This is a new apparatus without a write-up. The primary resources are the Thermofisher instrument manuals (below).
(The instrument is currently in room MP242.)
Additional Resources:
- Thermofisher Nicolet™ iS50 FTIR Spectrometer brochure.
- Pike Long-Path Gas Cell Installation and User Guide.
- Thermofisher Manuals on Quercus. (These are for APL use only and must not be copied or distributed!).
New Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer, 23 August 2021.