Optical spectroscopy utilizing planar spectral filters
First Claim
1. An optical spectrometer comprising:
- a planar spectral filter configured to filter incident light to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns;
a detector array having at least two dimensions;
a dispersion system disposed between the filter and the detector array, said dispersion system configured to disperse the spatial patterns along at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto the detector array; and
a processor operatively connected to the detector array, said processor configured to generate spectral estimates of the incident light based on the spatial patterns dispersed onto the detector array.
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Abstract
An optical spectrometer and/or a method of optical spectroscopy is described herein. One exemplary spectrometer includes a planar spectral filter, a dispersion system, and a detector array having at least two dimensions. The planar spectral filter filters incident light to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns. The dispersion system disperses the spatial patterns along at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto the detector array. As a result, spatial patterns corresponding to different wavelengths are centered at different locations on the detector array. The dispersed spatial patterns superimpose at the detector array in an offset but overlapping relationship, creating an asymmetric image that facilitates the spectral analysis of a wide range of light sources, including diffuse or spectrally complex light sources.
30 Citations
21 Claims
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1. An optical spectrometer comprising:
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a planar spectral filter configured to filter incident light to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns; a detector array having at least two dimensions; a dispersion system disposed between the filter and the detector array, said dispersion system configured to disperse the spatial patterns along at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto the detector array; and a processor operatively connected to the detector array, said processor configured to generate spectral estimates of the incident light based on the spatial patterns dispersed onto the detector array. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10)
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6. The optical spectrometer of 1 wherein the processor is configured to generate the spectral estimates by:
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sampling in at least one dimension the spatial patterns dispersed onto the detector array to generate a plurality of data samples; and inverting the plurality of data samples to generate the spectral estimates of the incident light. - View Dependent Claims (7)
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11. An optical spectrometer comprising:
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a planar spectral filter configured to filter incident light to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns; a detector array having at least two dimensions; a dispersion system disposed between the filter and the detector array, said dispersion system configured to disperse the spatial patterns in at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto the detector array; a lens system disposed between the dispersion system and the detector array, said lens system configured to image the spatial patterns onto the detector array; and a processor operatively connected to the detector array, said processor configured to; sample the spatial patterns dispersed onto the detector array in at least two dimensions to generate a plurality of data samples; and generate spectral estimates of the incident light based on the plurality of data samples. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A method of processing incident light comprising:
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spectrally filtering the incident light with a planar spectral filter to generate a plurality of wavelength dependent spatial patterns; dispersing the filtered light to disperse the spatial patterns in at least one dimension in a wavelength dependent fashion onto a detector array having at least two dimensions; and processing output signals provided by the detector array to generate spectral estimates of the incident light based on the spatial patterns dispersed onto the detector array. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification