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Tiny Low Cost Spectral Sensor from Ocean Optics

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Spark VIS with Logo

Spark’s solid state optical encoders bring spectroscopy to more applications than ever before

Ocean Optics’ new Spark spectral sensor uses optical technology advances to shrink instrument size, making it the smallest on the market to date. The Spark-VIS is the first offering in the Spark line of versatile spectral sensors, delivering high resolution measurements over the visible wavelength range of 380-700 nm. Available in both OEM and stand-alone configurations, the compact low-cost Spark-VIS is ideal for simple absorbance, fluorescence and emissive color measurements. It can be embedded to power next generation portable and Internet connected sensing devices for environmental, food, agriculture, biomedical and quality control applications; integrated directly on processing lines; or used as a benchtop instrument in teaching, research, medical and quality control labs.

The Spark-VIS is the first Ocean Optics spectral device to replace traditional diffraction gratings with a solid-state optical encoder. The resulting unit size and cost are comparable to that of a less robust RGB filter diode detector, but with the ability to take full spectral measurements. Compatible with Ocean Optics’ Raspberry Pi development kit, the Spark-VIS can be purchased off the shelf for applications engineering. The same spectral sensor can then be purchased economically in bulk for use as a component in portable and Internet-enabled devices.

The stand-alone Spark-VIS is easy to use, with plug and play USB connectivity. Its low cost makes it a good option for budget-conscious student labs. The even smaller OEM version runs off the host device’s driver and communication electronics, connected by ribbon cable. A line of Spark accessories, including clip-on cuvette holders, diffusers, and light sources, is compatible with both versions.

Spark has remarkable performance for a spectral sensor of its kind. Its aperture design optimizes light throughput. Robust optoelectronics ensure thermal stability over a -10° – 60° C operating range, for accurate analysis even in harsh environments. Unlike comparable devices, Spark delivers optical resolution of 4.5-9.0 nm (FWHM), making it viable for a wide range of applications.

Gerelateerd:

Ocean Optics

Ocean Optics is the world leader in solutions for optical sensing. We enable diverse applications in medical and biological research, environmental monitoring, life science, science education and entertainment lighting and display. Our extensive line of complementary technologies includes spectrometers, chemical sensors, metrology instrumentation, optical fibers and thin films and optics. Recognized as the inventor of miniature fiber optic spectroscopy, we’ve sold over 200,000 spectrometers worldwide since 1992.

Background

Ocean Optics began in 1989, when University of South Florida researchers developed a fiber optic pH sensor as part of an instrument designed to study the role of the oceans in global warming. They soon formed Ocean Optics, Inc., and their ingenious work earned a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. While designing the pH-monitoring instrument, the researchers wanted to incorporate with their sensor a spectrometer small enough to fit onto a buoy and were surprised to discover none existed. So, they built their own. In 1992, the founders of Ocean Optics filled a substantial need in the research community and changed the science of spectroscopy forever by creating a breakthrough technology: a miniature fiber optic spectrometer nearly 1,000 times smaller at 1/10 the cost of previous systems.

By April 1992, just 30 days after the successful completion of Phase II of the SBIR grant, Ocean Optics, Inc. introduced the S1000 — “The World’s First Miniature Fiber Optic Spectrometer.” As a result of the dramatic reduction in size and cost of optical sensing systems, applications once deemed too costly or technologically impractical using conventional spectrometers were not only feasible, but practical.

Now almost 20 years later, we’ve placed almost 175,000 systems worldwide and enabled thousands of different applications — from cancer detection and color matching to plasma monitoring and particle size analysis. Our spectrometers have been specified everywhere from research vessels in the Gulf of Mexico to the Mars rover.

 

Markets Served
Ocean Optics has developed a diversified set of manufacturing arts that are essential to components in four key photonics segments: Optical Sensing, Optical Networking, Display Optics and Biophotonics. Primary markets include consumer electronics, process control, environmental monitoring, life sciences and medical diagnostics. Our systems have been used everywhere from in vivo to the ocean floor; on the Mars Rover and the Mir space station; and in Florida’s orange groves and South America’s rain forests.

 

Spectroscopic techniques supported include:

  • UV-VIS-NIR spectroscopy
  • On-line spectroscopy
  • Spectroradiometry
  • Color spectroscopy
  • Raman spectroscopy
  • Fluorescence spectroscopy
  • Fiber optic chemical sensing
  • Spectral modeling
  • Spectral imaging

Major Products/Services

  • Fiber optic UV-VIS-NIR spectrometers ranging from miniature, modular systems to process analyzers
  • Low-cost Raman spectrometers for process control and other applications
  • Fiber optic chemical sensors for measuring oxygen and pH
  • Patterned dichroic optical filters and precision coatings for display and telecommunications applications
  • Optical fibers, assemblies and probes
  • Optical networking products, including A/R coatings, spectrum analyzers and optical filters for DWDM

 

Website: http://www.oceanoptics.com

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