Showing papers in "Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy & Radiative Transfer in 2008"

The NEMESIS planetary atmosphere radiative transfer and retrieval tool

Abstract: With the exception of in situ atmospheric probes, the most useful way to study the atmospheres of other planets is to observe their electromagnetic spectra through remote observations, either from ground-based telescopes or from spacecraft. Atmospheric properties most consistent with these observed spectra are then derived with retrieval models. All retrieval models attempt to extract the maximum amount of atmospheric information from finite sets of data, but while the problem to be solved is fundamentally the same for any planetary atmosphere, until now all such models have been assembled ad hoc to address data from individual missions. In this paper, we describe a new general-purpose retrieval model, Non-linear Optimal Estimator for MultivariatE Spectral analySIS (NEMESIS), which was originally developed to interpret observations of Saturn and Titan from the composite infrared spectrometer on board the NASA Cassini spacecraft. NEMESIS has been constructed to be generally applicable to any planetary atmosphere and can be applied from the visible/near-infrared right out to microwave wavelengths, modelling both reflected sunlight and thermal emission in either scattering or non-scattering conditions. NEMESIS has now been successfully applied to the analysis of data from many planetary missions and also ground-based observations.

Performance analysis of near-field thermophotovoltaic devices considering absorption distribution

Abstract: This paper elucidates the energy transfer and conversion processes in near-field thermophotovoltaic (TPV) systems, considering local radiation absorption and photocurrent generation in the TPV cell. Radiation heat transfer in a multilayered structure is modeled using the fluctuation–dissipation theorem, and the electric current generation is evaluated based on the photogeneration and recombination of electron–hole pairs in different regions of the TPV cell. The effects of near-field radiation on the photon penetration depth, photocurrent generation, and quantum efficiency are examined in the spectral region of interest. The detailed analysis performed in the present work demonstrates that, while the near-field operation can enhance the power throughput, the conversion efficiency is not much improved and may even be reduced. Subsequently, a modified design of near-field TPV systems is proposed to improve the efficiency.

A k-distribution-based radiation code and its computational optimization for an atmospheric general circulation model

Abstract: The gas absorption process scheme in the broadband radiative transfer code “mstrn8”, which is used to calculate atmospheric radiative transfer efficiently in a general circulation model, is improved. Three major improvements are made. The first is an update of the database of line absorption parameters and the continuum absorption model. The second is a change to the definition of the selection rule for gas absorption used to choose which absorption bands to include. The last is an upgrade of the optimization method used to decrease the number of quadrature points used for numerical integration in the correlated k-distribution approach, thereby realizing higher computational efficiency without losing accuracy. The new radiation package termed “mstrnX” computes radiation fluxes and heating rates with errors less than 0.6 W/m2 and 0.3 K/day, respectively, through the troposphere and the lower stratosphere for any standard AFGL atmospheres. A serious cold bias problem of an atmospheric general circulation model using the ancestor code “mstrn8” is almost solved by the upgrade to “mstrnX”.

A study of radiative properties of fractal soot aggregates using the superposition T-matrix method

Abstract: We employ the numerically exact superposition T-matrix method to perform extensive computations of scattering and absorption properties of soot aggregates with varying state of compactness and size. The fractal dimension, Df, is used to quantify the geometrical mass dispersion of the clusters. The optical properties of soot aggregates for a given fractal dimension are complex functions of the refractive index of the material m, the number of monomers NS, and the monomer radius a. It is shown that for smaller values of a, the absorption cross section tends to be relatively constant when Dfo2 but increases rapidly when Df42. However, a systematic reduction in light absorption with Df is observed for clusters with sufficiently large NS, m, and a. The scattering cross section and single-scattering albedo increase monotonically as fractals evolve from chain-like to more densely packed morphologies, which is a strong manifestation of the increasing importance of scattering interaction among spherules. Overall, the results for soot fractals differ profoundly from those calculated for the respective volume-equivalent soot spheres as well as for the respective external mixtures of soot monomers under the assumption that there are no electromagnetic interactions between the monomers. The climate-research implications of our results are discussed.

The GEISA spectroscopic database: Current and future archive for Earth and planetary atmosphere studies

Abstract: The development of Gestion et Etude des Informations Spectroscopiques Atmospheriques (GEISA: Management and Study of Spectroscopic Information) was started over three decades at Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique (LMD) in France. GEISA is a computer accessible spectroscopic database, designed to facilitate accurate forward radiative transfer calculations using a line-by-line and layer-by-layer approach. More than 350 users have been registered for on-line use of the GEISA facilities. The current 2003 edition of GEISA (GEISA-03) is a system comprising three independent sub-databases devoted respectively to: line transition parameters, infrared and ultraviolet/visible absorption cross-sections, microphysical and optical properties of atmospheric aerosols. Currently, GEISA is involved in activities related to the assessment of the capabilities of IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer on board of the METOP European satellite) through the GEISA/IASI database derived from GEISA. The GEISA-03 content is presented, placing emphasis on molecular species of interest for Earth and planetary atmosphere studies, with details on the updated 2008 archive underway. A critical assessment on the needs, in terms of molecular parameters archive, related with recent satellite astrophysical missions is made. Detailed information on free on-line GEISA and GEISA/IASI access is given at http://ara.lmd.polytechnique.fr and http://ether.ipsl.jussieu.fr.

Role of fluctuational electrodynamics in near-field radiative heat transfer

Abstract: The objective of this paper is to discuss the role of fluctuational electrodynamics in the context of a generalized radiative heat transfer problem. Near-field effects, including the interference phenomenon and radiation tunneling, are important for applications to nanostructures. The classical theory of radiative transfer cannot be readily applied as the feature size approaches the dominant wavelength of radiative emission. At all length scales, however, propagation of radiative energy is properly represented by the electromagnetic wave approach, which requires the solution of the Maxwell equations. Fluctuational electrodynamics provides a model for thermal emission when solving a near-field radiation heat transfer problem, and the fluctuation–dissipation theorem provides the bridge between the strength of the fluctuations of the charges inside a body and its local temperature. This paper provides a complete and systematic derivation of the near-field radiative heat flux starting from the Maxwell equations. An illustrative example of near-field versus far-field radiation heat transfer is presented, and the length scale for transition from near- to far-field regime is discussed; the results show that this length scale can be as large as three times than predicted from Wien's law.

Spectroscopic database of CO2 line parameters: 4300–7000 cm−1

Abstract: A new spectroscopic database for carbon dioxide in the near infrared is presented to support remote sensing of the terrestrial planets (Mars, Venus and the Earth). The compilation contains over 28,500 transitions of 210 bands from 4300 to 7000 cm−1 and involves nine isotopologues: 16O12C16O (626), 16O13C16O (636), 16O12C18O (628), 16O12C17O (627), 16O13C18O (638), 16O13C17O (637), 18O12C18O (828), 17O12C18O (728) and 18O13C18O (838). Calculated line positions, line intensities, Lorentz half-width and pressure-induced shift coefficients for self- and air-broadening are taken from our recent measurements and are presented for the Voigt molecular line shape. The database includes line intensities for 108 bands measured using the McMath–Pierce Fourier transform spectrometer located on Kitt Peak, Arizona. The available broadening parameters (half-widths and pressure-induced shifts) of 16O12C16O are applied to all isotopologues. Broadening coefficients are computed using empirical expressions that have been fitted to the experimental data. There are limited data for the temperature dependence of widths and so no improvement has been made for those parameters. The line intensities included in the catalog vary from 4×10−30 to 1.29×10−21 cm−1/(molecule cm−2) at 296 K. The total integrated intensity for this spectral interval is 5.9559×10−20 cm−1/(molecule cm−2) at 296 K.

Determination of effective atomic numbers and effective electron densities for Cu/Zn alloy

Abstract: The mass attenuation coefficients, total interaction cross-sections, effective atomic numbers, effective electron densities and photon mean free paths of the Cu/Zn alloy were determined on the basis of the mixture rule at 356, 511, 662, 835 and 1275 keV gamma-ray energies. The gamma-rays were detected by using an ordinary NaI(Tl) scintillation detection system with a resolution of 10.2% at 662 keV.It was observed that the mixture rule is a suitable method for determination of these parameters. The effective atomic numbers and effective electron densities tend to be almost constant as a function of energy. There is good agreement between experiment and theory, calculated by WinXCom.

An inverse analysis of a transient 2-D conduction–radiation problem using the lattice Boltzmann method and the finite volume method coupled with the genetic algorithm

Abstract: This article deals with the simultaneous estimation of parameters in a 2-D transient conduction–radiation heat transfer problem. The homogeneous medium is assumed to be absorbing, emitting and scattering. The boundaries of the enclosure are diffuse gray. Three parameters, viz. the scattering albedo, the conduction–radiation parameter and the boundary emissivity, are simultaneously estimated by the inverse method involving the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) and the finite volume method (FVM) in conjunction with the genetic algorithm (GA). In the direct method, the FVM is used for computing the radiative information while the LBM is used to solve the energy equation. The temperature field obtained in the direct method is used in the inverse method for simultaneous estimation of unknown parameters using the LBM–FVM and the GA. The LBM–FVM–GA combination has been found to accurately predict the unknown parameters.

Metallic foams: Radiative properties/comparison between different models

Abstract: The aim of this study is to determine the radiative properties, which are the extinction coefficient, the scattering albedo and the scattering phase function, of highly porous open-cell aluminium foam, using more-or-less simple predictive models, and to compare all these models. The radiative properties are predicted using geometric optics laws to model the interaction of radiation with the particles forming the foam. Moreover, the particles forming the foam are large compared with the considered wavelength and are supposed to be sufficiently distant from each other to scatter radiation independently. Thus, the radiative characteristics of the foam can be determined by adding the contributions of each particle. A particular attention is paid on microstructure analysis and modelling. We considered different kinds of cell shapes and struts cross-section, using microscopic and tomographic analysis. Furthermore, a new phase function modelling is presented. Finally, we compare the results of each method with the radiative properties obtained from experimental measurements of directional and hemispherical transmittances and hemispherical reflectance.

Monte Carlo simulation of radiative heat transfer and turbulence interactions in methane/air jet flames

Abstract: A Photon Monte Carlo method combined with a composition PDF method is employed to model radiative heat transfer in combustion applications. Turbulence–radiation interactions (TRIs) can be fully taken into account using the proposed method. Sandia's Flame D and artificial flames derived from it are simulated and good agreement with experimental data is found. The effects of different TRI components are investigated. It is shown that, to predict the radiation field accurately, emission TRI must be taken into account, while, as expected, absorption TRI is negligible in the considered nonsooting methane/air jet flames if the total radiation quantities are concerned, but non-negligible for evaluation of local quantities. The influence of radiation on the turbulent flow field is also discussed.

SASKTRAN: A spherical geometry radiative transfer code for efficient estimation of limb scattered sunlight

Abstract: The inversion of satellite-based observations of limb scattered sunlight for the retrieval of constituent species requires an efficient and accurate modelling of the measurement. We present the development of the SASKTRAN radiative transfer model for the prediction of limb scatter measurements at optical wavelengths by method of successive orders along rays traced in a spherical atmosphere. The component of the signal due to the first two scattering events of the solar beam is accounted for directly along rays traced in the three-dimensional geometry. Simplifying assumptions in successive scattering orders provide computational optimizations without severely compromising the accuracy of the solution. SASKTRAN is designed for the analysis of measurements from the OSIRIS instrument and the implementation of the algorithm is efficient such that the code is suitable for the inversion of OSIRIS profiles on desktop computers. SASKTRAN total limb radiance profiles generally compare better with Monte-Carlo reference models over a large range of solar conditions than the approximate spherical and plane-parallel models typically used for inversions.

Gauss–Newton reconstruction method for optical tomography using the finite element solution of the radiative transfer equation

Abstract: The radiative transfer equation can be utilized in optical tomography in situations in which the more commonly applied diffusion approximation is not valid. In this paper, an image reconstruction method based on a frequency domain radiative transfer equation is developed. The approach is based on a total variation output regularized least squares method which is solved with a Gauss–Newton algorithm. The radiative transfer equation is numerically solved with a finite element method in which both the spatial and angular discretizations are implemented in piecewise linear bases. Furthermore, the streamline diffusion modification is utilized to improve the numerical stability. The approach is tested with simulations. Reconstructions from different cases including domains with low-scattering regions are shown. The results show that the radiative transfer equation can be utilized in optical tomography and it can produce good quality images even in the presence of low-scattering regions.

Experimental and theoretical studies on high-temperature thermal properties of fibrous insulation

Abstract: In the present paper, an experimental apparatus has been developed to measure heat transfer through high-alumina fibrous insulation for thermal protection system. Effective thermal conductivities of the fibrous insulation were measured over a wide range of temperature (300–973 K) and pressure (10−2–105 Pa) using the developed apparatus. The specific heat and the transmittance spectra in the wavelength range of 2.5–25 μm were also measured. The spectral extinction coefficients and Rosseland mean extinction coefficients were obtained from transmittance data at various temperatures to investigate the radiative heat transfer in fibrous insulation. A one-dimensional finite volume numerical model combined radiation and conduction heat transfer was developed to predict the behavior of the effective thermal conductivity of the fibrous insulation at various temperatures and pressures. The two-flux approximation was used to model the radiation heat transfer through the insulation. The experimentally measured specific heat and Rosseland mean extinction coefficients were used in the numerical heat transfer model to calculate the effective thermal conductivity. The average deviation between the numerical results for different values of albedo of scattering and the experimental results was investigated. The numerical results for ω=1 and experimental data were compared. It was found that the calculated values corresponded with the experimental values within an average of 13.5 percent. Numerical results were consistent with experimental results through the environmental conditions under examination.

Elliptic PDE formulation and boundary conditions of the spherical harmonics method of arbitrary order for general three-dimensional geometries

Abstract: The inherent complexity of the radiative transfer equation makes the exact treatment of radiative heat transfer impossible even for idealized situations and simple boundary conditions. Therefore, a wide variety of efficient solution methods have been developed for the RTE. Among these solution methods the spherical harmonics method, the moment method, and the discrete ordinates method provide means to obtain higher-order approximate solutions to the equation of radiative transfer. Although the assembly of the governing equations for the spherical harmonics method requires tedious algebra, their final form promises great accuracy for any given order, since it is a spectral method (rather than finite difference/finite volume in the case of discrete ordinates). In this study, a new methodology outlined in a previous paper on the spherical harmonics method ( P N ) is further developed. The new methodology employs successive elimination of spherical harmonic tensors, thus reducing the number of first-order partial differential equations needed to be solved simultaneously by previous P N approximations ( = ( N + 1 ) 2 ) . The result is a relatively small set ( = N ( N + 1 ) / 2 ) of second-order, elliptic partial differential equations, which can be solved with standard PDE solution packages. General boundary conditions and supplementary conditions using rotation of spherical harmonics in terms of local coordinates are formulated for the general P N approximation for arbitrary three-dimensional geometries. Accuracy of the P N approximation can be further improved by applying the “modified differential approximation” approach first developed for the P 1 -approximation. Numerical computations are carried out with the P 3 approximation for several new two-dimensional problems with emitting, absorbing, and scattering media. Results are compared to Monte Carlo solutions and discrete ordinates simulations and a discussion of ray effects and false scattering is provided.

Application of multi-phase particle swarm optimization technique to inverse radiation problem

Abstract: The multi-phase particle swarm optimization (MPPSO) technique is applied to the inverse radiation problem in the present paper. The directional radiative intensities are served as the measurement data to estimate the radiative source term, optical thickness, scattering albedo, and phase function in one-dimensional semitransparent plane-parallel media by the inverse simulation. To check the performance and accuracy in retrieval, a comparison is presented between three PSO methods, i.e. the MPPSO, the standard PSO, and the Stochastic PSO. The results confirm the potential of the proposed approach MPPSO and show its effectiveness and superiority over the other two PSO algorithms. Furthermore, the effects of swarm size, searching space, phase change frequency, and velocity-reinitializing frequency on the convergence velocity and computational accuracy of MPPSO are also investigated.

Light scattering in a finite multi-particle system

Abstract: We use the discrete dipole approximation (DDA) to perform electromagnetic scattering calculations of particles in a 3D volume. We adjust the spacing between the particles to change the volume densities of the scattering systems from approximately 10% to 100%. For very large volume densities, e.g. >50%, it is difficult to assign unambiguously whether the system is composed of a single heterogeneous particle or of multiple particles. Our calculations demonstrate optical effects attributable to multiple scattering in systems having volume densities as high as ∼90%. This suggests that heterogeneities within naturally occurring particle systems can produce multiple-scattering effects. We also see evidence of very deep negative polarization branches (NPBs) (∼−6%) that may have implications in interpreting polarization phase curves of cometary circumnuclear halos.

Water-vapor continuum absorption in the 800-1250 cm-1 spectral region at temperatures from 311 to 363 K

Abstract: About 200 pure water-vapor spectra covering the region from 800 to 3500 cm−1 were recorded with resolution of 0.1 cm−1 at temperatures 311, 318, 325, 339, 352, and 363 K using a 2 m base White cell coupled to the BOMEM DA3.002 FTIR spectrometer. The water-vapor pressure varied from 28 to 151 mbar (21–113 Torr). Under these conditions, the continuum absorbance is quite measurable with the available path lengths up to 116 m. A program was developed for spectral processing that calculates, fits, and removes ro-vibrational structure from the spectrum. The spectra obtained were used to retrieve averaged and smoothed binary absorption coefficients over the region from 800 to 1250 cm−1. Our continuum data extrapolated to room temperature are in reasonable agreement with the MT_CKD continuum model. But at higher temperatures the MT_CKD model provides very low values, which are up to 50% less than those experimentally measured.

An overview on recent radiation transport algorithm development for optical tomography imaging

Abstract: Optical tomography belongs to the promising set of non-invasive methods for probing applications of semi-transparent media. This covers a wide range of fields. Nowadays, it is mainly driven by medical imaging in search of new less aggressive and affordable diagnostic means. This paper aims at presenting the most recent research accomplished in the authors’ laboratories as well as that of collaborative institutions concerning the development of imaging algorithms. The light transport modelling is not a difficult question as it used to be. Research is now focused on data treatment and reconstruction. Since the turn of the century, the rapid expansion of low cost computing has permitted the development of enhanced imaging algorithms with great potential. Some of these developments are already on the verge of clinical applications. This paper presents these developments and also provides some insights on still unresolved challenges. Intrinsic difficulties are identified and promising directions for solutions are discussed.

Evidence for the contribution of water dimers to the near-IR water vapour self-continuum

Abstract: The nature of the water vapour continuum absorption and the possible contribution of water dimers (WD) to this phenomenon have been a matter of debate for many years. The current work presents an overview and analysis of a number of experiments, both recent and old, where spectral signatures, similar to recent theoretical predictions for WD, have been observed in equilibrium laboratory conditions within near-infra-red (IR) water vapour absorption bands. These experiments, in contrast to those where water complexes are usually studied in non-equilibrium and low-temperature conditions, can give direct information about the possible WD amount in atmospheric conditions. Intercomparison of the results of these works and the recent ab initio prediction for WD band intensities and positions testifies in favour of a significant contribution of WD absorption to the water vapour self-continuum in the centre of the strongest near-IR water vapour absorption bands.

Toward unified satellite climatology of aerosol properties: Direct comparisons of advanced level 2 aerosol products

Abstract: The development of a unified satellite climatology of aerosol properties requires accurate quantification and deep understanding of the underlying factors contributing to discrepancies between individual satellite products. In this paper we compare the most recent level 2 results obtained for coincident pixels viewed at essentially the same time by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) instruments flown on the EOS Terra platform. This strategy eliminates potential sampling effects and provides a virtually direct comparison of spatially and temporally collocated MODIS and MISR retrievals. We show that the MODIS and MISR Angstrom exponent datasets reveal essentially no correlation. Although the corresponding aerosol optical thickness (AOT) datasets can agree worse than expected over the oceans, still the agreement is often satisfactory. However, the agreement over the land is often poor or even unacceptable. Of the collocated pixels for which there is a MODIS aerosol retrieval, only ∼40% or fewer pixels have a MISR aerosol retrieval, and vice versa. These findings further illustrate the complexity of the problem of aerosol retrievals from satellite observations and indicate that the creation of a meaningful unified MODIS–MISR aerosol climatology will be a nontrivial task.

Diode laser measurements of temperature-dependent collisional-narrowing and broadening parameters of Ar-perturbed H2O transitions at 1391.7 and 1397.8 nm

Abstract: High-resolution absorption lineshapes of two H 2 O transitions near 7185.60 and 7154.35 cm −1 have been recorded in a heated static cell as a function of temperature (296–1100 K) and pressure (6–830 Torr) using two distributed-feedback diode lasers. The measured absorption spectra are least squares fit to both Voigt and Galatry profiles. Strong collisional-narrowing effects are observed in the Ar-broadened H 2 O spectra at near-atmospheric pressure due to the relatively weak collisional broadening induced by Ar–H 2 O collisions, while collisional narrowing is not significant for pure H 2 O absorption lineshapes. Line strengths and self-broadening coefficients are inferred from the pure H 2 O absorption spectra and compared with published data. Temperature dependences of the Ar-induced broadening, narrowing, and shift coefficients are determined using Galatry fits to the absorption data. The measured collisional-narrowing parameters have similar temperature dependence to the collisional-broadening coefficients.

Discrete-ordinate radiative transfer in a stratified medium with first-order rotational Raman scattering

Abstract: Rotational Raman scattering (RRS) by air molecules in the Earth's atmosphere is predominantly responsible for the Ring effect: Fraunhofer and absorption-feature filling-in observed in UV/visible backscatter spectra. Accurate determination of RRS effects requires detailed radiative transfer (RT) treatment. In this paper, we demonstrate that the discrete-ordinate RT equations may be solved analytically in a multi-layer multiple scattering atmosphere in the presence of RRS treated as a first-order perturbation. Based on this solution, we develop a generic pseudo-spherical RT model LIDORT-RRS for the determination of backscatter radiances with RRS included; the model will generate output at arbitrary viewing geometry and optical thickness. Model comparisons with measured RRS filling-in effects from OMI observations show very good agreement. We examine telluric RRS filling-in effects for satellite-view backscatter radiances in a spectral range covering the ozone Huggins absorption bands. The model is also used to investigate calcium H and K Fraunhofer filling-in through cloud layers in the atmosphere.

Exact solution for the scattering and absorption properties of sphere clusters on a plane surface

Abstract: A formulation and computational scheme are presented for predicting the scattering and absorption cross-sections, and the scattering matrix elements, of clusters of non-intersecting spheres that are lying on or above an infinite plane surface and exposed to plane-wave radiation. The formulation provides an exact solution to Maxwell's equations and the associated boundary conditions on the spheres and the plane surface, and is applicable for arbitrary refractive indices for the spheres and the surface. A simplified strategy is presented for the calculation of the surface reflection matrix, which transforms the reflected scattered field from one sphere into a regular vector spherical harmonic expansion centered about another sphere. The calculation results are presented for the clusters of one, two, and four polystyrene spheres, with size parameters of one and 10, lying on a silicon substrate, and are compared with the predictions from the normal incidence approximation (NIA) in which the reflectance of the surface is assumed constant at the normal incidence value. The results show that the accuracy of the NIA is highly dependent on the extent of the sphere cluster, the angle of incidence, and the particular quantity (cross-sections, scattering matrix elements) under examination.

New measurements of the water vapor continuum in the region from 0.3 to 2.7 THz

Abstract: We present a spectroscopic study of the water vapor continuum absorption in the far-IR region from 10 to 90 cm−1 (0.3–2.7 THz). The experimental technique combines a temperature-stabilized multipass absorption cell, a polarizing (Martin–Puplett) interferometric spectrometer, and a liquid-He-cooled bolometer detector. The contributions to the absorbance resulting from the structureless H2O–H2O and H2O–N2 continua have been measured in the temperature range from 293 to 333 K with spectral resolution of 0.04–0.12 cm−1. The resonant water vapor spectrum was modeled using the HITRAN04 database and a Van Vleck–Weisskopf lineshape function with a 100 cm−1 far-wing cut-off. Within experimental uncertainty, both the H2O–H2O and H2O–N2 continua demonstrate nearly quadratic dependencies of absorbance on frequency with, however, some deviation near the 2.5 THz window. The absorption coefficients of 3.83 and 0.185 (dB/km)/(kPa THz)2 were measured for self- and foreign-gas continuum, respectively. The corresponding temperature exponents were found to be 8.8 and 5.7. The theoretically predicted foreign continuum is presented and a reasonable agreement with experiment is obtained.

Precise measurement of pressure broadening parameters for water vapor with a terahertz time-domain spectrometer

Abstract: The pressure broadening parameters g N2 and g O2 of pure rotational transitions of water vapor with nitrogen and oxygen as foreign gases, respectively, were measured with a terahertz time-domain spectrometer (THz-TDS) in the frequency region from 0.5 to 3.5 THz. A White-type multi-pass cell was introduced in the THz-TDS system to precisely measure the absorption spectra of water vapor. The parameters of 36 lines were determined for both N2 and O2, of which 25 parameters for gN2 and 28 parameters for gO2 were the first laboratory experimental data. The quantum number dependence of the parameters was experimentally observed for the first time due to the good signal-to-noise ratio of this system compared with the conventional Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR) experiments. r 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Measurements of near-UV absorption spectra of acetone and 3-pentanone at high temperatures

Abstract: Gas phase acetone and 3-pentanone absorption cross sections have been measured in shock-heated gases in the wavelength range from 220 to 340 nm (the n − π * system) at temperatures between 300 and 1100 K. Absorption measurements using a deuterium source and a kinetic spectrograph enable accurate, broadband measurements of absorption cross sections while simultaneously observing decomposition at elevated temperatures, thus minimizing errors due to product formation. The absorption spectra of both ketones increase in strength and shift to the red with increasing temperature. The spectra are fitted to a parameterized Gaussian curve to allow for calculations of the cross sections as a function of temperature and wavelength.

Confinement of infrared radiation to nanometer scales through metallic slit arrays

Abstract: One-dimensional metallic slit array has been intensively studied in the spectral range from ultraviolet to near-infrared due to its enhanced transmission for transverse magnetic waves. However, the transmission enhancement is sensitive to the wavelength of incident radiation because of resonance characteristics. In this paper, we theoretically demonstrate that confining mid-infrared radiation to nanometer scales with a large transmission enhancement can be achieved from an aluminum slit array in a wavelength-insensitive manner, for potential applications in localized heating and nanothermal patterning. The Poynting vector and energy density calculated from the rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA) are used to explain the strong localization of electromagnetic energy in the near-field regime. Furthermore, the localization of energy is also studied when a dielectric substrate is used to support the slit array in practical applications.

On the solution of a vectorial radiative transfer equation in an arbitrary three-dimensional turbid medium with anisotropic scattering

Abstract: The authors developed a numerical method of the boundary-value problem solution in the vectorial radiative transfer theory applicable to the turbid media with an arbitrary three-dimensional geometry. The method is based on the solution representation as the sum of an anisotropic part that contains all the singularities of the exact solution and a smooth regular part. The regular part of the solution could be found numerically by the finite element method that enables to extend the approach to the arbitrary medium geometry. The anisotropic part of the solution is determined analytically by the special form of the small-angle approximation. The method development is performed by the examples of the boundary-value problems for the plane unidirectional and point isotropic sources in a turbid medium slab.

A correlated-k model of radiative transfer in the near-infrared windows of Venus

Abstract: We present a correlated- k -based model for generating synthetic spectra in the near-infrared window regions, from 1.0 to 2.5 μm, emitted from the deep atmosphere of Venus on the nightside. This approach is applicable for use with any near-infrared instrument, ground-based and space-borne, for analysis of the thermal emissions in this spectral range. We also approach this work with the view of using the model, in conjunction with a retrieval algorithm, to retrieve minor species from the Venus Express/VIRTIS instrument. An existing radiative-transfer model was adapted for Venusian conditions to deal with the prevailing high pressures and temperatures and other conditions. A comprehensive four-modal cloud structure model based on Pollack et al. [Near-infrared light from venus’ nightside: a spectroscopic analysis. Icarus 1993;103:1–42], using refractive indices for a 75% H 2 SO 4 25% H 2 O mixture from Palmer and Williams [Optical constants of sulfuric acid; application to the clouds of Venus? Appl Opt 1975;14(1):208–19], was also implemented. We then utilized a Mie scattering algorithm to account for the multiple scattering effect between cloud and haze layers that occur in the Venusian atmosphere. The correlated- k model is shown to produce good agreement with ground-based spectra of Venus in the near infrared, and to match the output from a line-by-line radiative-transfer model to better than 10%.