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Introduction to Nanotechnology

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10-<br />

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8.1. INTRODUCTION 195<br />

Figure 8.1. Sketch of incident electromagnetic wave intensity Io being partially absorbed In,<br />

partially reflected IR and partially transmitted IT by a sample.<br />

result light is absorbed. In transmission spectroscopy the reflected signal is<br />

neglected, and the absorption is determined by a decrease in the transmitted intensity<br />

ZT as a function of the scanning frequency o (or A), while in reflection spectroscopy<br />

the transmission is neglected and the absorption is determined from the change Z, in<br />

the reflected light. The former is used for transparent samples and the latter, for<br />

opaque ones. Thus spectroscopic measurements can be made by gradually scanning<br />

E, o, or A of the incoming light beam and measuring its effect on ZT (or IR), whose<br />

amplitude is recorded during the scan. More modem equipment makes use of charge-<br />

coupled devices (CCDs) as light detec<strong>to</strong>rs. These are arrays of metal oxide semi-<br />

conduc<strong>to</strong>rs (MOS) that consist of a p-type silicon layer, a silicon dioxide layer, and a<br />

metal plate. Incident pho<strong>to</strong>ns generate minority carriers, and the current is propor-<br />

tional <strong>to</strong> the intensity of the light, and the time of exposure. These devices make<br />

several rapid scans of the wavelength range, and in conjunction with computer pro-<br />

cessing, they enable the recording of the complete spectrum in a relatively short time.<br />

This chapter discusses investigations of nanomaterials using spectroscopic<br />

techniques in the infrared and Raman regions of the spectrum (frequencies from<br />

10l2 <strong>to</strong> 4 x 1014Hz, wavelengths A from 300 <strong>to</strong> 1 pm), as well as visible and<br />

ultraviolet spectroscopy (frequencies from 4 x 1014 <strong>to</strong> 1.5 x A from 0.8 <strong>to</strong><br />

0.2 pm).<br />

Another type of spectroscopy is emission spectroscopy. An incident pho<strong>to</strong>n h oo<br />

raises an electron from its ground state Egnd <strong>to</strong> an excited energy level E,,,, the<br />

electron undergoes a radiationless transition <strong>to</strong> an intermediate energy state, and then<br />

it returns <strong>to</strong> its ground-state level, emitting in the process a pho<strong>to</strong>n h alum, that can<br />

be detected, as shown in Fig. 8.2. If the emission takes place immediately, it is called<br />

Jluorescence, and if it is delayed as a result of the finite lifetime of the intermediate<br />

metastable state Emet, it is calledphosphorescence. Both types of emission paths are<br />

referred <strong>to</strong> as luminescence, and the overall process of light absorption followed by<br />

emission is called pho<strong>to</strong>emission. Emission spectroscopy can be studied by varying<br />

the frequency of the incident exciting light, by studying the frequency distribution of

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