title: Spectrophotometer spectral bandwidth calibration with absorption bands crystal standard.
abstract: A procedure for calibration of a spectral bandwidth standard for high-resolution spectrophotometers is described. Symmetrical absorption bands for a crystal standard are adopted. The method relies on spectral band shape fitting followed by a convolution with the slit function of the spectrophotometer. A reference spectrophotometer is used to calibrate the spectral bandwidth standard. Bandwidth calibration curves for a minimum spectral transmission factor relative to the spectral bandwidth of the reference spectrophotometer are derived for the absorption bands at the wavelength of the band absorption maximum. The family of these calibration curves characterizes the spectral bandwidth standard. We calibrate the spectral bandwidth of a spectrophotometer with respect to the reference spectrophotometer by determining the spectral transmission factor minimum at every calibrated absorption band of the bandwidth standard for the nominal instrument values of the spectral bandwidth. With reference to the standard spectral bandwidth calibration curves, the relation of the spectral bandwidth to the reference spectrophotometer is determined. We determine the discrepancy in the spectrophotometers' spectral bandwidths by averaging the spectral bandwidth discrepancies relative to the standard calibrated values found at the absorption bands considered. A weighted average of the uncertainties is taken.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Ciências e Tecnologias Opticas, Rua do Campo Alegre, 687, PT-4150y007 Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: O D
authors.initials: OD
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Costa