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The spectral resolution of a spectrograph, or, more generally, of a frequency spectrum, is a measure of its ability to resolve features in the electromagnetic spectrum.It is usually denoted by , and is closely related to the resolving power of the spectrograph, defined as =, where is the smallest difference in wavelengths that can be distinguished at a wavelength of .
The Planck relation [1] [2] [3] (referred to as Planck's energy–frequency relation, [4] the Planck–Einstein relation, [5] Planck equation, [6] and Planck formula, [7] though the latter might also refer to Planck's law [8] [9]) is a fundamental equation in quantum mechanics which states that the energy E of a photon, known as photon energy, is proportional to its frequency ν: =.
To find the value of the energy spectral density ¯ at frequency , one could insert between the transmission line and the resistor a bandpass filter which passes only a narrow range of frequencies (, say) near the frequency of interest and then measure the total energy () dissipated across the resistor.
In a distribution, full width at half maximum (FWHM) is the difference between the two values of the independent variable at which the dependent variable is equal to half of its maximum value. In other words, it is the width of a spectrum curve measured between those points on the y -axis which are half the maximum amplitude.
σ λ is their absorption cross-section at wavelength λ (units: area) B λ (T) is the Planck function for temperature T and wavelength λ (units: power/area/solid angle/wavelength - e.g. watts/cm 2 /sr/cm) I λ is the spectral intensity of the radiation entering the increment ds with the same units as B λ (T)
The rate at which EM energy is detected by the detector is measured. This measured rate is then divided by Δλ to obtain the detected power per square metre per unit wavelength range. Spectral flux density is often used as the quantity on the y-axis of a graph representing the spectrum of a light-source, such as a star.
Mathematically, for the spectral power distribution of a radiant exitance or irradiance one may write: =where M(λ) is the spectral irradiance (or exitance) of the light (SI units: W/m 2 = kg·m −1 ·s −3); Φ is the radiant flux of the source (SI unit: watt, W); A is the area over which the radiant flux is integrated (SI unit: square meter, m 2); and λ is the wavelength (SI unit: meter, m).
The equivalent width of a spectral line is a measure of the area of the line on a plot of intensity versus wavelength in relation to underlying continuum level. It is found by forming a rectangle with a height equal to that of continuum emission, and finding the width such that the area of the rectangle is equal to the area in the spectral line.