title: Comparative study of integrating cavity absorption meters.
abstract: Integrating spheres (IS) are widely used for recording spectra of scattering samples by placing the specimen inside or outside the sphere. An unusual application of integrating spheres has been also demonstrated earlier where the liquid sample completely filled the spherical cavity; such a device is often called an integrating cavity absorption meter (ICAM). In the present work, integrating cavities with different coatings are compared. The spheres were made of glass, covered by metal or white paint, and their surfaces were prepared for diffuse or specular reflectance. The spheres were evaluated by recording kinetic traces following a short light pulse with the aid of time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC), and by recording steady-state spectra through single-photon counting (SPC) detection. The relative efficiencies of the spheres were determined by comparing the steady-state spectra. Possible reasons for differences in the performance are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Physics, University of Pécs, Ifjúság u. 6., H-7624 Pécs, Hungary. erostyak@fizika.ttk.pte.hu
authors.forename: János
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Erostyák
authors.forename: Tamás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jávorfi
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buzády
authors.forename: K Razi
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Naqvi
authors.forename: Gyozo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Garab
mesh_terms: D000042:Absorption; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000737:chemistry; D012542:Scattering, Radiation; D013053:Spectrophotometry / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013499:Surface Properties; D020524:Thylakoids / Q000737:chemistry