LP980 Spectrometer

Description

The LP980 from Edinburgh Instruments is a transient absorption spectrometer designed for the study of short-lived chemical and biological species. Its core methodology is the pump-probe technique, facilitated by a flashlamp-pumped, Q-switched Nd:YAG laser that provides excitation pulses at fundamental and harmonic wavelengths of 1064 nm, 532 nm, 355 nm, or 266 nm. Detection is handled by a Czerny-Turner monochromator with a 325 mm focal length and a triple grating turret, covering a spectral range from 200 nm to 870 nm. The system offers two primary operational modes. In kinetic mode, a single-point detector records transient decay profiles at a specific wavelength, with full spectra constructed via automated scanning. In spectral mode, a gated, intensified CCD camera captures an entire spectrum from a single laser pulse by comparing signals with and without the pump pulse. A standard transverse sample excitation geometry is employed, and the dual sample chamber supports measurements of transient species up to 2.55 µm. Optional accessories enable experiments involving thin films, diffuse reflection, and fluorescence or phosphorescence lifetime measurements down to the nanosecond range.