Spectrophotometry

of optical
components
Prepared by dr. Lina Mažulė
Content
• Types of spectrophotometers;
• The parts of spectrophotometer;
• Importance of light sources;
• Prisms vs gratings;
• The slit;
• Detector;
• The measurements of optical components:
• Reflectance;
• Transmittance;
• Absorptance.
• The interpretation of spectra and requirements.
 Types of spectrophotometers

• According wavelength:
• UV
• VIS
• IR
• NIR
• According type of monochromator:
• Prism
• Grating
• According applications:
• Optical Spectroscopy
• Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
• Mass Spectroscopy
• Elemental Analysis
• Surface Analysis Techniques
• Etc.
 Types of
measurements
• Transmittance;
• Reflectance;
• Absorptance;
• Scattering;
• Emittance;
• Fluorescence.

R+T+A+S=1
Types of measurements

T. A. Germer, J. C. Zwinkels, and B. K. Tsai, Spectrophotometry: Accurate Measurement

of Optical Properties of Materials. Elsevier Science, 2014.
Electromagnetic spectrum

[1] J. M. Hollas, Modern Spectroscopy. Wiley, 2004.

 The main parts of spectrophotometer

• Light source;
• Monochromator:
• Dispersion device;
• Exit slit;
• Polarizer;
• Beam splitter;
• Sample holder;
• Analyzer;
• Detector.
The Light source
 The Light source

• The spectral radiance should be relatively smooth over the intended

spectral range;
• The light source must have sufficient radiant output to meet the particular
measurement needs;
• Stability of the radiation source is also important for accurate
spectrophotometric measurements.
 The Light source

• Quartz tungsten halogen

(QTH) lamps
• Xenon

• Deuterium lamps

• Blackbody
 The Light source: Quartz tungsten halogen (QTH) lamps

• Temperature: 3300 K;

• Very smooth spectrum;

• Peak radiace - 880 nm;

• Cuts off in the ultraviolet;

 The Light source: Xenon arc lamps

• Temperatures 5000–7000 K;
• Significant atomic line
structure in the IR;
• Limited highest accuracy
measurements;
• Problems with stability;
 The Light source: Deuterium lamps D2

• Available in the deep UV;

• Often used in conjunction
with QTH lamps;
 The Light source

• Applications for IR;

• Stability;

• Spatial uniformity
 The Light source

The broadband emission of a high-power

supercontinuum laser source from NKT Photonics
(Reference EXB-6) is launched into a volume
hologram filtering device from Photon etc.
(Reference LLTF VIS-2), which delivers a 1 mW free
space single-mode beam with a central wavelength
that is tunable between 400 and 1000 nm and a full
width at half-maximum (FWHM) bandwidth of
approximately 2 nm.
 The Light source

• Wait until the

spectrophotometer
lamp is fully heated!
The monochromator
• The dispersing element serves to take
collimated radiation and redirect that
radiation into directions that depend upon
the wavelength.
• The deviation angle θ is a function of the
wavelength λ: θ = θ (λ).
• The most important is the dispersion,
dθ/dλ, which indicates how that angle
depends upon the wavelength.
• The input optic of a spectral analyzer (a
monochromator or a polychromator)
usually serves to take an image of an input
aperture, or a slit, and focus it at infinity, so
that the light is approximately collimated.
 The monochromator: dispersing element – gratings

If radiation is collimated and incident upon the grating at

an angle i, the grating will diffract radiation into specific
angles θ
that satisfy the diffraction equation

  sin  sin

G – is inverse period G=1/Λ - units of lines or grooves per
millimeter. m is diffraction order. 1. https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
2. T. A. Germer, J. C. Zwinkels, and B. K. Tsai, Spectrophotometry: Accurate
Measurement of Optical Properties of Materials. Elsevier Science, 2014.
 The monochromator: dispersing element – prisms
Operation of a prism is based upon the
refraction of light, governed by Snell’s law, and
the dispersion of the index of refraction n(λ)
with wavelength.

 sin Θ    sinΘ 

nair is index of refraction of the air, θair is the

angle of propagation in air, n(λ)prism is the
wavelength-dependent index of refraction of
the prism, and θ(λ)prism is the wavelength-
dependent angle of propagation in the prism.
1. https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
2. T. A. Germer, J. C. Zwinkels, and B. K. Tsai, Spectrophotometry: Accurate Measurement of Optical Properties of Materials. Elsevier Science, 2014.
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance
Prism Diffraction Grating
Spectral resolution 1-10 nm variable 1-10 nm constant
Wavelength range 365-920 nm simultaneously 400-800 nm, or one octave
(500-1000 nm)
Light throughput Up to 90% constant Max 70% at a single blaze
(signal) wavelength, dropping at longer
and shorter wavelength
2nd order pollution None Second order always overlaps
1st order in excess of one
octave
NIR efficiency Excellent. Compensates for Poor due to poor camera and
falling QE efficiency in the red grating efficiency in the red
https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance

Detailed Diffraction Grating Characteristics: Pros

• Off the shelf optional groove densities and wavelength dispersion
options;
• Wide selection of blaze wavelengths.

At home:
https://youtu.be/zeSdqK4QPtk https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance
Detailed Diffraction Grating Characteristics: Cons
• Produced either mechanically with burnished grooves (incorporates “ruling
errors”) or holographically with limited groove density potential
• All have a peak efficiency at just one wavelength (the “blaze” wavelength).
Diffraction efficiency drops off rapidly to shorter and gradually to longer
wavelengths
• Grating efficiency curves present “anomalies” or discontinuities in the efficiency
profile.
• Classical “mechanically ruled” gratings are more efficient that those produced
holographically
• The efficiency curves of all diffraction gratings are affected by light diffraction into
higher “orders”

https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance
Detailed Diffraction Grating Characteristics: Cons
• Each order is one octave, for example, 400 to 800-nm. Second order will be 200
to 400-nm and overlay first order
• To remove second order overlap order sorting filters are required
• In actual practice peak efficiency of a diffraction grating is almost always less than
70% and can drop to near zero at the extremities of its spectral range
• Wavelength dispersion (nm/mm) is non-linear varying as the diffraction angle and
the distance to focus at each wavelength. In practice, wavelength dispersion is
linear enough to present near constant resolution especially for low resolution
instruments
• Bottom line: Ruled gratings are more efficient than many holographic gratings
when considered over a wide wavelength range. Nevertheless diffraction
gratings cannot be used over a wavelength range greater than an octave without
order sorting filters.

https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance

Detailed Prism Spectrometer Characteristics:

• The major attraction of a prism is the near <90% average transmission
efficiency at all wavelengths above ∼365 nm. The efficiency profile is flat
with no drop-off after ∼400 nm. In terms of efficiency a prism will
outperform all diffraction gratings.

https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance
Detailed Prism Spectrometer Characteristics: Pros
• Ironically non-linear wavelength dispersion! As the QE of a camera
decrease at longer wavelengths bandpass falls to compensate.
Consequently, a prism delivers significantly higher signal to noise ratio over
an extended wavelength range than a diffraction grating.
• Transmission efficiency is a flat > 90% over the bulk of a wavelength range
above ~400 nm outperforming all diffraction gratings
• Refraction does not result in “overlapping orders,” consequently a prism
operates over greater than one octave without requiring filtering. Prisms
work from 365 to 920-nm or above.
• Diffraction gratings split up incoming light into diffraction orders reducing
efficiency.

https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
 The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance

Detailed Prism Spectrometer Characteristics: Cons

• Compared to gratings, prisms are very expensive. Only high end
instruments addressing challenging applications use a prism.
• Wavelength dispersion is non-linear, consequently bandpass and resolution
change from high in the blue to lower in the red. Linearizing dispersion is
trivial in the software, but does not compensate for impact of changing
bandpass.

https://lightforminc.com/prism-grating/
The monochromator: Prism Versus Diffraction Grating Performance
 The monochromator: the slit
Why the slit is important part of monochromator?
• The purpose of the two slits in this monochromator is to control the size and
"position" of the beam of light passing through the slit.
• On the way in, the entrance slit makes sure that only a small area of the input
beam passes into the monochromator and that the light waves are relatively
parallel coming from the source.
• Since the light will be carefully allowed to flow among the mirrors and a grating
inside the monochromator, parallel beams insure alignment of the light beams
with the internal optics and cut down on stray light that might end up where it's
not wanted.
• The edges of the slit are very carefully machined so that the distance between
the two edges through which the light passes are equidistant all along the slit
opening.
• The slit size is variable, though usually not continuously.
The monochromator: the slit
d

SLIT SIZE d ∼ ∆λ

INTENSITY
The monochromator: the slit
d

There is dispersion in the wavelengths across the aperture.

SLIT SIZE d ∼ ∆λ

INTENSITY
 The monochromator: the slit
There is dispersion in the wavelengths across the aperture.
• The way to remove this effect is to use two monochromators in
subtractive mode.
• The two monochromators are configured so that the dispersion in
one of them is the opposite of the other.

Disadvantage of this configuration:

• The intensity is lost!
The monochromator: the slit

If the spectral dependence of e(λ) and

Lλ(λ) are slowly varying, the total radiant
power exiting the monochromator is:

e(λ) denotes the combined efficiency

(including reflectance of the mirrors and the spectral
the absolute efficiency of the dispersive bandpass
element) of the internal function
The shift of
monochromator components
entrance slit image
on the exit slit. The projected solid there is a spectral radiance Lλ(λ),
angle collected by the which we assume is uniform in
monochromator. position and direction
 The monochromator: the slit
Other problems to solve:
• The radiance at the entrance slit is rarely uniform.
• Because of the focusing optics the aberrations alter the image of the
entrance slit on the exit slit.
• The slit width increases, the instrument spectral function deviates
from the ideal shape.

For these reasons, it is important in critical applications to measure

this lineshape function!
 The detector
Common types of detectors for spectrophotometers:
• Photomultiplier tubes
• High sensitivity;
• Spectral range from DUV to NIR

• Semiconductor photovoltaic or photoconductive

devices:
• Silicon devices – spectral response up to 1100 nm; Other important
• InGaAs – spectral response 800-1700 nm, 800-2500 nm for specifications:
extended version;
• High sensitivity
• Pbs – spectral response 900-3000 nm;
• Germanium – spectral response 800-1800nm; • Large area
• High uniformity
• Pyroelectric and thermopile detectors - – spectral • Large linearity
response in IR and NIR.
J. M. Palmer and B. G. Grant, The Art of Radiometry. SPIE Press, 2010.
 The detector: one- and two-dimensional array detectors
• CCD – Charge-coupled device; They are relatively
inexpensive!
• PDA – photodiode array;
• CMOS – complimentary metal oxide semiconductor

• All of these detectors share the fundamental absorption properties of

silicon, but differ in how they are addressed and read out.
• CCDs and CMOS sensors integrate charge PDAs are addressable
that has accumulated at a junction. photodiodes and measure
• CCDs and CMOS sensors can have an photocurrent
extremely wide dynamic range, since the
integration time can be varied accurately
from milliseconds to many minutes
 The detector: the noise

• NEP depends upon wavelength but is usually quoted

at a single wavelength.
• The detectors are characterized by a specific
detectivity, given by

• The higher a detector’s D∗, generally, the more

sensitive it is.

A is an area of the detector.

 The detector: the noise For most solid-state
detectors, the NEP is
dominated by Johnson
noise and thus is
proportional to the
• There are two dominant noise sources in solid-state square root of the area
detectors: A of the detector.
 The detector: Spatial and angle of illumination uniformity

It is important if:
• the detector is used directly behind or at the
image of the exit slit of a monochromator;
• PMTs is used.

Possible solutions for better uniformity:

• The use of a diffuser in front of the detector;
• The use of an integrating sphere.
 The detector: linearity
• The signal recorded should be proportional to
the radiant quantity incident upon the detector.
• It is important to verify the linearity of the
detectors being used in spectrophotometry.
• The radiant quantity is radiant power if the beam
underfills the detector aperture and is irradiance
if the beam overfills this aperture.
• All detectors have a level at which they saturate;
• Detectors often exhibit nonlinearity that can
either be a function of local irradiance (power
density) rather than total radiant power.
The detector: linearity

Hamamatsu PMT Handbook ver.2.

The detector: linearity

Hamamatsu PMT Handbook ver.2.

 The detector: testing the linearity

The types of methods for testing the linearity:

• Dependent methods;
• Independent methods.

The dependent methods:

• They are based upon performing spectrophotometric measurements
on a set of known samples:
Filters;
Solutions;
Etc.
 The detector: testing the linearity

The independent methods can be classified into three methods:

The superposition method relies on exposing the detector to two
independent sources of radiation. One measures each of the two signals,
• superposition, S1 and S2, and then both at the same time S1+2. If the detector is linear,
then S1+S2=S1+2.
The attenuation method uses a set of unknown absorbing filters. If the
• attenuation, transmittances are t1, t2, . . ., tN, then combinations of filters, say t1 and t2,
should yield the product t1t2. By using not just two, but every combination
of the filters, one can determine the values of each of the transmittances
and the linearity in the system over a wide signal range.
• differential The differential method applies a small, constant ac fluctuation to the
lamp power and measures the ac fluctuation of the detected signal. If the
detector is linear, the ratio of the ac fluctuation to the dc value will remain
constant.
 The detector: stray light

• Stray light on the detector is a false signal.

• There are two sources of stray-light:
1. The stray light that is in the field of view of the radiometer: the light from
the light source of the device, scattered light of monochromator;

2. The stray light from outside the field of view: sunlight, laboratory lamps etc.
 The detector: stray light

• Stray light can be particularly problematic with polychromators that

use charge-coupled devices (CCDs) or photodiode arrays (PDAs),
because they detect all wavelengths simultaneously.
• A small percentage of stray light originating in the red portion of the
spectrum, where silicon detector sensitivity is usually high, will have a
very large impact at the shorter wavelengths in the ultraviolet and
blue region, where the primary radiation level is low.
• This situation also exists in spectrophotometers which use
broadband photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) or Si photodiodes as the
sensor.
 The detector: stray light

• The correction of the influence of straylight in CCD based

instruments:
• Usage of monochromatic radiation, from either a tunable laser
source;
• Usage of a monochromator, at discrete wavelengths across the range
of interest;
• Measuring the system response to obtain a spectral stray light
correlation matrix.
 The detector: stray light

For a conventional spectrophotometer, stray radiant energy (SRE) can

be described as either:
• Isochromatic;
Isochromatic SRE is radiation of the same wavelengths as incident on the sample,
that is, within the instrument bandpass, but which reaches the detector without
actually interacting with the sample.
• Heterochromatic.
Heterochromatic SRE is radiation of wavelengths outside the instrument
bandpass setting.
 The detector: stray light

• The heterochromatic stray radiant energy (HSRE) is primarily caused

by scattering from inside the monochromator from the grating and
the optics and also higher orders in a grating instrument.
• This can be reduced by matching the f-number of the input optics to
the internal optics of the spectrophotometer, thus reducing the
amount of extraneous radiation inside the spectrophotometer.
• A second source of HSRE is reentry spectra. This occurs when light
diffracts back to the collimator, and returns to the grating and
diffracts again, eventually emerging from the exit slit.
• it is possible to reduce this directional stray light by inserting
additional bandpass filters in the optical path of the instrument.
 The detector: stray light

• The measurement of stray light can be performed using broadband

radiation with a cut-on filter.
• The filter is placed between the monochromator and the source;
• The monochromator is scanned in the wavelength region where the
cut-on filter should be suppressing any radiation from being
transmitted.
• The ratio of the signal in the wavelength region that is blocked to that
in the wavelength region that is transmitted is the stray light
suppression ratio.
 The samples

• High reflectance mirrors;

• Antireflection windows;
• Beam splitters;
• Polarizers:
• Waveplates;
• Brewster type polarizers;
• Polarizing cubes;
• Lenses;
• Filters;
• Etc.
The samples
The samples: lenses
 The samples: thickness, AOI and refractive index

AOI=0° AOI=0°

AOI=i1°
AOI=i°
The samples: thickness, AOI and refractive index
 The samples: requirements for witness samples

• The witness piece shall be such that it presents no difficulty in

measuring and testing the optical and durability requirements of the
coating.
• The witness piece shall have a surface finish similar to that of the
component to be coated.
• The witness piece shall simulate the axial thickness of the component
by either computational methods or using a witness piece that has
the same thickness as the coated component for the measurement of
transmission characteristics;
• The witness sample should be made from the same material as the
test batch.
 The samples: requirements for witness samples

• For transmission where both surfaces are coated (e.g., a singlet lens),
both sides are polished (p) and coated (T).
p+T

p+T
• For transmission where one side is coated (e.g., lens 1 of a doublet),
both sides are polished (p), but only one is coated (T).
p

p+T
 The samples: requirements for witness samples

• For reflection of a transmitted coating for each coated surface, one

side is polished (p) and coated (T), and the second is ground (g).
g

p+T
• For a reflection coating, one side is polished (p) and coated (R), and
the second is ground (g).
g

p+R
 The samples: requirements for witness samples

• For a reflection coating, both sides are polished (p), but only one side
is coated (R).
p

p+R
 Spectral characterization of optical coatings

• High reflectance mirrors;

• Antireflection windows;
• Beam splitters;
• Polarizers:
• Waveplates;
• Brewster type polarizers;
• Polarizing cubes;
• Lenses;
• Filters;
• Etc.
The types of optical components according
characteristics of spectra
The types of optical components according
characteristics of spectra

R=1-T – perfect case

R=1-T-A-S – in reality
The types of optical components according
characteristics of spectra

S can be divided to :
• Reflected and add to R;
• Transmitted and add to T.
The types of optical components according
characteristics of spectra
Then we will have:
R=1-T-A – for real
T

1
R A
The types of optical components according
characteristics of spectra
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Literature
• J. M. Palmer and B. G. Grant, The Art of
Radiometry. SPIE Press, 2010.
• T. A. Germer, J. C. Zwinkels, and B. K. Tsai,
Spectrophotometry: Accurate Measurement of
Optical Properties of Materials. Elsevier Science,
2014.
• Hamamatsu PMT handbook Version.2
• M. Hausner, Optics Inspections and Tests: A Guide
for Optics Inspectors and Designers. SPIE Press,
2017.