QUADRUPOLE RESONANCE USING NARROWBAND PROBES AND CONTINUOUS WAVE EXCITATION
First Claim
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1. An apparatus to assist detection of an analyte within a sample volume using nuclear quadrupole resonance (QR), the analyte having a QR response at an expected response frequency, the apparatus comprising:
- a continuous wave exciter;
a superconducting resonator having a resonance frequency; and
a receiver circuit, receiving a signal from the superconducting resonator, the receiver circuit not including a lock-in amplifier.
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Abstract
The use of a superconducting resonator with continuous-wave (CW) excitation allows low-noise quadrupole resonance (QR) detection without the need for a lock-in amplifier. This allows detection times to be greatly reduced. Hence, for the first time, a CW QR spectrometer using a superconducting resonator can be used in a portable device, such as a hand-held wand for detecting explosives.
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Citations
11 Claims
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1. An apparatus to assist detection of an analyte within a sample volume using nuclear quadrupole resonance (QR), the analyte having a QR response at an expected response frequency, the apparatus comprising:
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a continuous wave exciter;
a superconducting resonator having a resonance frequency; and
a receiver circuit, receiving a signal from the superconducting resonator, the receiver circuit not including a lock-in amplifier. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method of detecting an analyte within a search volume, the search volume including a volume in transit using commercial transportation, the method comprising:
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exciting the search volume using a continuous-wave oscillator;
detecting a QR response signal from the search volume using a superconducting resonator, the superconducting resonator having a resonance frequency;
adjusting the resonance frequency of the superconducting resonator so as to obtain a QR spectrum of the search volume; and
detecting the analyte within the search volume using a QR resonance in the QR spectrum. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11)
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Specification