Information relating to a target molecule in a sample volume containing sample molecules is obtained by applying a sequence of temporally varying fields in a field direction to the sample volume caused by acoustic forces and/or by electromagnetic fields where the sequence of temporally varying fields is chosen to produce a sequence of at least two different perturbed molecular configurations for said target molecule in the sample and where the perturbed molecular configurations are at least in part correlated with the direction of said applied fields. A sequence of probe radiation is applied on the sample molecules and interaction radiation is collected for measuring amplitudes of the interaction radiation collected for a plurality of directions and/or polarizations which are related to the field direction. Where reference spectra are available from previous experiments, the method can be used for identifying a target molecule in the sample volume.

Surface sensing methods for imaging a scanned surface of a sample via sum-frequency vibrational spectroscopy are disclosed herein. The methods include exposing a sampled location of the scanned surface to a visible light beam and exposing the sampled location to a tunable infrared beam such that the tunable infrared beam is at least partially coincident with the visible light beam. The methods also include varying a frequency of the tunable infrared beam an inducing optical resonance within an imaged structure that extends at least partially within the sampled location. The methods further include receiving at least a portion of an emitted light beam from the sampled location and scanning the visible light beam and the runnable infrared beam across the scanned portion of the scanned surface. The methods also include generating an image of the scanned portion of the scanned surface based upon the receiving and the scanning.

Surface sensing methods for imaging a scanned surface of a sample via sum-frequency vibrational spectroscopy are disclosed herein. The methods include exposing a sampled location of the scanned surface to a visible light beam and exposing the sampled location to a tunable infrared beam such that the tunable infrared beam is at least partially coincident with the visible light beam. The methods also include varying a frequency of the tunable infrared beam an inducing optical resonance within an imaged structure that extends at least partially within the sampled location. The methods further include receiving at least a portion of an emitted light beam from the sampled location and scanning the visible light beam and the runnable infrared beam across the scanned portion of the scanned surface. The methods also include generating an image of the scanned portion of the scanned surface based upon the receiving and the scanning.

Disclosed is a method of acquiring and forming a spectrometry image of a sample including the following steps: e1) acquisition of an initial image, composed of pixels, of an area of the sample and definition of a maximum set of N, 2≤N, measurement positions of spectrometry, each measurement position including a coordinate and an intensity determined on the basis of the pixels; e2) assignment of a classification value to each of the N measurement positions on the basis of deviations, calculated based on an intensity difference and a coordinate difference, between the measurement positions; e3) determination of a group of P, 1≤P≤N, measurement positions as a function of the classification values; e4) successively, for each measurement position of the group, positioning of an excitation beam in the measurement position on the area of the sample, acquisition of a spectrometry measurement and formation of the spectrometry image.

Disclosed is a method of acquiring and forming a spectrometry image of a sample including the following steps: e1) acquisition of an initial image, composed of pixels, of an area of the sample and definition of a maximum set of N, 2≤N, measurement positions of spectrometry, each measurement position including a coordinate and an intensity determined on the basis of the pixels; e2) assignment of a classification value to each of the N measurement positions on the basis of deviations, calculated based on an intensity difference and a coordinate difference, between the measurement positions; e3) determination of a group of P, 1≤P≤N, measurement positions as a function of the classification values; e4) successively, for each measurement position of the group, positioning of an excitation beam in the measurement position on the area of the sample, acquisition of a spectrometry measurement and formation of the spectrometry image.

The Raman scattering spectroscopic method according to the present invention include: preparing a chip having a channel in which a nanostructure is formed; introducing an analyte solution into a part of the channel in the chip; irradiating an interface of the analyte solution with a laser beam; and measuring Raman scattering light induced by the irradiation of the laser beam. The measurement may be performed, with a fixed laser beam irradiation position, both in a state where the interface of the analyte solution is included in the laser-beam-irradiation area and in a state where the interface of the analyte solution is not included in the laser-beam-irradiation area, or may be performed keeping the state where the interface of the analyte solution is maintained in the laser-beam-irradiation area by controlling the laser-beam-irradiation area according to the movement of the interface due to evaporation of the analyte solution.

The Raman scattering spectroscopic method according to the present invention include: preparing a chip having a channel in which a nanostructure is formed; introducing an analyte solution into a part of the channel in the chip; irradiating an interface of the analyte solution with a laser beam; and measuring Raman scattering light induced by the irradiation of the laser beam. The measurement may be performed, with a fixed laser beam irradiation position, both in a state where the interface of the analyte solution is included in the laser-beam-irradiation area and in a state where the interface of the analyte solution is not included in the laser-beam-irradiation area, or may be performed keeping the state where the interface of the analyte solution is maintained in the laser-beam-irradiation area by controlling the laser-beam-irradiation area according to the movement of the interface due to evaporation of the analyte solution.

A method for detecting at least one property of a plant product, the method including: directing source light including ultraviolet (UV) light at UV wavelengths and polarized visible and/or near-infrared (VIS/NIR) light at VIS/NIR wavelengths onto a region of the plant product; blocking the polarized VIS/NIR light of the source light, and blocking polarized specular reflection from the region of the plant product, from being transmitted to a visible and/or near-infrared (VIS/NIR) spectrometer; and transmitting a portion of emitted light caused by fluorescence and/or diffuse reflection from the region of the plant product to the visible and/or near-infrared (VIS/NIR) spectrometer.

An apparatus for carrying out polarization resolved Raman spectroscopy on a sample (11), in particular a crystalline or polycrystalline sample, the apparatus comprises: at least one light source (13, 87, 93, 95, 97), in particular at least one laser, for providing excitation radiation to a surface of the sample (11), an optical system which is configured to simultaneously collect at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) and at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111) from Raman light scattered by the sample (11) in response to exposing the surface to the excitation radiation, the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) being scattered from the sample (11) in a direction that is aligned with an optical axis of an objective (41) of the optical system for collecting the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109), the at least one off-axis Raman beam being scattered from the sample in a direction that is inclined with regard to an optical axis of an objective (41) of the optical system for collecting the at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111), the optical system comprises at least one polarizer device (25, 113) for generating at least one polarized on-axis Raman beam (31, 33) from the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) and at least one polarized off-axis Raman beam (35) from the at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111), and the optical system comprises at least one spectrometer (37, 47 81, 83, 85) for generating, in particular simultaneously, an optical spectrum from each of the at least one polarized on-axis Raman beam (31, 33) and the at least one polarized off-axis Raman beam (35).

An apparatus for carrying out polarization resolved Raman spectroscopy on a sample (11), in particular a crystalline or polycrystalline sample, the apparatus comprises: at least one light source (13, 87, 93, 95, 97), in particular at least one laser, for providing excitation radiation to a surface of the sample (11), an optical system which is configured to simultaneously collect at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) and at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111) from Raman light scattered by the sample (11) in response to exposing the surface to the excitation radiation, the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) being scattered from the sample (11) in a direction that is aligned with an optical axis of an objective (41) of the optical system for collecting the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109), the at least one off-axis Raman beam being scattered from the sample in a direction that is inclined with regard to an optical axis of an objective (41) of the optical system for collecting the at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111), the optical system comprises at least one polarizer device (25, 113) for generating at least one polarized on-axis Raman beam (31, 33) from the at least one on-axis Raman beam (21, 109) and at least one polarized off-axis Raman beam (35) from the at least one off-axis Raman beam (23, 111), and the optical system comprises at least one spectrometer (37, 47 81, 83, 85) for generating, in particular simultaneously, an optical spectrum from each of the at least one polarized on-axis Raman beam (31, 33) and the at least one polarized off-axis Raman beam (35).