Ultraviolet Stand-off Raman Measurements Using a Gated Spatial Heterodyne Raman Spectrometer.

A spatial heterodyne Raman spectrometer (SHRS) is evaluated for stand-off Raman measurements in ambient light conditions using both ultraviolet (UV) and visible pulsed lasers with a gated ICCD detector. The wide acceptance angle of the SHRS simplifies optical coupling of the spectrometer to the telescope and does not require precise laser focusing or positioning of the laser on the sample. If the laser beam wanders or loses focus on the sample, as long as it is in the field of view of the SHRS, the Raman signal will still be collected.

Single-pulse standoff Raman detection of chemicals from 120 m distance during daytime.

The capability to analyze and detect the composition of distant samples (minerals, organics, and chemicals) in real time is of interest for various fields including detecting explosives, geological surveying, and pollution mapping. For the past 10 years, the University of Hawaii has been developing standoff Raman systems suitable for measuring Raman spectra of various chemicals in daytime or nighttime. In this article we present standoff Raman spectra of various minerals and chemicals obtained from a distance of 120 m using single laser pulse excitation during daytime.

Remote-Raman spectroscopic study of minerals under supercritical CO2 relevant to Venus exploration.

The authors have utilized a recently developed compact Raman spectrometer equipped with an 85 mm focal length (f/1.8) Nikon camera lens and a custom mini-ICCD detector at the University of Hawaii for measuring remote Raman spectra of minerals under supercritical CO(2) (Venus chamber, ∼102 atm pressure and 423 K) excited with a pulsed 532 nm laser beam of 6 mJ/pulse and 10 Hz. These experiments demonstrate that by focusing a frequency-doubled 532 nm Nd:YAG pulsed laser beam with a 10× beam expander to a 1mm spot on minerals located at 2m inside a Venus chamber, it is possible to measure the remote Raman spectra of anhydrous sulfates, carbonates, and silicate minerals relevant to Venus exploration during daytime or nighttime with 10s integration time.