Disclosed is an instrument including a multipath, monolithic optical component, made up of a portion of a transparent material between two opposite faces of the component. One of the two faces of the component is formed by a first refracting surface, and the other face includes several second refracting surfaces which are juxtaposed. Each optical path of the component is formed by one of the second refracting surfaces in combination with a corresponding portion of the first refracting surface. One such component is suited for being part, within the instrument, of a detection module with multiple optical paths arranged in parallel, with a matrix photodetector shared by the optical paths. Such a detection module may be compact enough in order to be integrated into a cryostat cold screen, improving cooling thereof, and may be combined with an objective in order to form an instrument with multiple optical paths.

The present invention provides a time-resolved single-photon counting apparatus, including an excitation light source for generating pulsed excitation light, a specimen optics for collecting an optical signal caused by irradiating the pulsed excitation light to a specimen, a photoelectric converter for photoelectrically converting the optical signal to generate an analog single-photon signal, an analog-to-digital (AD) signal converter for sampling the analog single-photon signal to convert the same into a digital single-photon signal, a digital photon-discrimination and timing detector for generating a photon-discrimination signal by discriminating the single-photon property of the digital single-photon signal to count a pulse time point of the digital single-photon signal to generate a delay time signal having delay time information, and a time-signal processor for counting valid single-photon detection events according to the delay time with reference to the photon-discrimination signal.

A method of processing two dimensional optical spectra, such as echelle spectra, is disclosed. The optical spectra comprise sections having a relatively high intensity separated by borders having a relatively low intensity. The optical spectra have been digitized (61) by a detector. The method comprises denoising (62) an optical spectrum, searching (64) for at least one series of neighboring local extrema of the optical spectrum, fitting (65) a line through each series of neighboring local extrema, each line representing a section, identifying (67) any peaks and their respective locations, and storing (68) the lines and the locations of any peaks.

A method of processing two dimensional optical spectra, such as echelle spectra, is disclosed. The optical spectra comprise sections having a relatively high intensity separated by borders having a relatively low intensity. The optical spectra have been digitized (61) by a detector. The method comprises denoising (62) an optical spectrum, searching (64) for at least one series of neighboring local extrema of the optical spectrum, fitting (65) a line through each series of neighboring local extrema, each line representing a section, identifying (67) any peaks and their respective locations, and storing (68) the lines and the locations of any peaks.

A terahertz scanner for detecting irregularities, such as chemical or structural variations, in a sample and methods of use thereof are described. The described terahertz scanner and algorithms allow for direct, high-sensitivity, high-throughput, and non-invasive detection of irregularities that range from chemical contaminant to material defects in a variety of substrates and settings.

A compact spectrometer is disclosed that is suitable for use in mobile devices such as cellular telephones. In preferred embodiments, the spectrometer comprises a filter, at least one Fourier transform focusing element, a micro-lens array, and a detector, but does not use any dispersive elements. Methods for using the spectrometer as an end-user device for performing on-site determinations of food quality, in particular, by comparison with an updatable database accessible by all users of the device, are also disclosed.

Aspects relate to a compact and low-cost gas analyzer that can be used for different types of gas analysis, such as air quality analysis. The gas analyzer can include a light source, a gas cell configured to receive a sample (e.g., a gas under test), a spectral sensor including a spectrometer and a detector, and an artificial intelligence (AI) engine. Light can enter the gas cell and interact with the sample to produce output light that may be measured by the spectral sensor. The resulting spectrum produced by the spectral sensor may be analyzed by the AI engine to produce a result. The gas analyzer further includes a self-calibration component configured to enable calibration of the sample spectrum to compensate for spectral drift of the spectral sensor.

A spectroscopic camera includes: a spectral filter having an optical area that transmits light with a predetermined wavelength from incident light; an image sensor receiving transmitted light transmitted through the spectral filter; and a casing accommodating the spectral filter and the image sensor. A direction in which the incident light enters is a first direction. The casing includes: a cylindrical lens mount which a lens that the incident light enters is attachable to and removable from and which has a center axis along the first direction; a wall having an aperture that has an aperture center coaxial with the center axis of the lens mount and that is smaller than a cylindrical inner diameter of the lens mount and equal to or smaller than an outer diameter of the optical area; a filter accommodation unit accommodating the spectral filter at such a position that the optical area covers the aperture, as viewed in a plan view along the first direction; and an imaging sensor accommodation unit provided downstream of the filter accommodation unit in the first direction and accommodating the image sensor at such a position that the image sensor overlaps the aperture as viewed in the plan view.

Modulation-encoded light, using different spectral bin coded light components, can illuminate a stationary or moving (relative) target object or scene. Response signal processing can use information about the respective different time-varying modulation functions, to decode to recover information about a respective response parameter affected by the target object or scene. Electrical or optical modulation encoding can be used. LED-based spectroscopic analysis of a composition of a target (e.g., SpO2, glucose, etc.) can be performed; such can optionally include decoding of encoded optical modulation functions. Baffles or apertures or optics can be used, such as to constrain light provided by particular LEDs. Coded light illumination can be used with a focal plane array light imager receiving response light for inspecting a moving semiconductor or other target. Encoding can use orthogonal functions, such as an RGB illumination sequence, or a sequence of combinations of spectrally contiguous or non-contiguous colors.

A spectrometry device includes a switch and a converter. The switch acquires a first reception signal and a second reception signal that respectively include information relating to an optical spectrum and switches between outputting the first reception signal and outputting the second reception signal based on control by a controller. The converter converts the first reception signal or the second reception signal output from the switch into a digital signal.