Impact of pellet preparation on reflectance measurements of ammonium sulfate by single-angle reflectance spectroscopy for optical constants

E. Diaz; K. D. Hughey; A. C. Dohnalkova; T. L. Myers; T. A. Blake; S. D. Burton; T. J. Johnson

doi:10.1117/12.2559989

24 April 2020 Impact of pellet preparation on reflectance measurements of ammonium sulfate by single-angle reflectance spectroscopy for optical constants

E. Diaz, K. D. Hughey, A. C. Dohnalkova, T. L. Myers, T. A. Blake, S. D. Burton, T. J. Johnson

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 11416, Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) Sensing XXI; 1141604 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2559989
Event: SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing, 2020, Online Only

Abstract

The optical constants, n and k, are required to model the reflection, refraction and transmission of light at the first surface interface of a material, as well as its propagation through the material; here n corresponds to the real component and k the imaginary component of the refractive index. Several spectroscopic methods have been used to determine the n and k values for different materials, including single-angle reflectance spectroscopy and ellipsometry. The single-angle reflectance method quantitatively records the specular reflectance R(ṽ) from a plane parallel face of the material and uses the Kramers-Kronig transform to extract the n and k values. For most compounds, however, it is difficult to obtain a single crystal or high-quality window of sufficient planarity and of the appropriate dimensions (several mm) to make the measurement. For this reason, we further investigate the use of pressed pellets of neat powdered substances to measure optical constants of these substances using the single-angle reflectance method. We have found that surface roughness can significantly influence the measured quantitative reflectance spectrum R(ṽ) and, consequently, the derived n and k values. A collaborative study between Defence Research and Development Canada - Valcartier Research Center (DRDC-VRC) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has been carried out using different pellets of neat ammonium sulfate [(NH₄)₂SO₄] to show how parameters, such as the particle size composition and the grinding process, can affect the reflectance spectrum used to derive the optical constants. All pressed pellets were characterized by single-angle reflectance spectroscopy.

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E. Diaz, K. D. Hughey, A. C. Dohnalkova, T. L. Myers, T. A. Blake, S. D. Burton, and T. J. Johnson "Impact of pellet preparation on reflectance measurements of ammonium sulfate by single-angle reflectance spectroscopy for optical constants", Proc. SPIE 11416, Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) Sensing XXI, 1141604 (24 April 2020); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2559989

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