Chem 101 WT3: Spectrophotometry

Absorbance (A)

Substance to absorb radiation; log of 1/T

Absorptivity

measure of absorption at a given wavelength

absorbtivity equals

absorbance divided by the product of concentration and path length

Beer's law

equation that states absorbance (A) is proportional to absorbtivity (a), path length(b) and concentration(c)

Blank

a solution without analyte

Infrared (IR) radiation

770-12,000 nm region on the spectrum

Molar absorptivity

1 molar solution @ 1 cm path length under prescribed conditions

Monochromatic

one wavelength

Photodetector

device to measure presence of light

Refraction

deflection from straight path

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation

180-390 nm region of the spectrum

Visible light

390-780 nm region of the spectrum

Wavelength

distance between 2 wave crests

Spectrophotometry

measurement of light intensity @ a selected wavelength

Transmittance

Amount of light allowed through a solution

Calculate reference transmittance

IR/I0

Calculate sample transmittance

IS/IR

Beer's law says concentration is proportional to

light absorption

Beer's law says that concentration is inversely proportional to

log of T

a" is constant under what conditions?

Temperature, pH, solvent, incubation time, same wavelength

Concentration is always reported to what decimal place?

Same decimal place as the standard concentration

What are the units for A?

None

Composition of reagent blanks should be

identical to the calibration of the unknown solution

Basic components of a spectrophotometer

light source, means to isolate wavelength, fiber optics, cuvettes, photodetector, readout device, computer

Most common light source is

tungsten light bulb

most common systems to isolating radiant energy

filter, prism, diffraction gratings

simplest type of filter

thin layer of colored glass

photo-detectors convert light into

electric signal

most commonly used photo-detector

photomultiplier tube (PMT)

Readout devices are a visual numerical display of

absorbence or concentration

Computers for spectrophotometry must do what 3 things?

digitally store calibration; automatically subtract blanks from calibrator; automatically calculate concentration