Development of an Acousto-Optic Tunable Filter Based Imaging Radiometer for Solar Spectral Measurement

70104 Current solar spectral instruments either measure light intensity at discrete wavelengths and/or have poor wavelength resolution. Some also contain moving parts that are vulnerable to vibration. These factors limit the performance and accuracy of information derived from the acquired data. This project will develop an acousto-optic tunable filter for spectral measurements and demonstrate imaging radiometric measurement in the wavelength range 0.36 to 3.0 microns. With this filter, contamination error can be reduced, higher resolution can be obtained, and information at any wavelength can be measured instantaneously. In Phase I, a dual transducer acousto-optic tunable filter, along with the driving and control electronics, will be built and used as the dispersion element in a radiometer. High spectral resolution and fast data acquisition in the wavelength range from 0.36 to 2.5 microns will be demonstrated. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: The new filter should lead to a wide band pass optical spectrometer that has many applications in scientific research, biomedical and pharmaceutical production, etc.