Abstract: A low cost portable fiber optic fluorometer is packaged as a personal computer peripheral and is based on interchangeable modules. One embodiment of the fluorometer comprises an excitation source, a detector, a signal processor, frequency source, wavelength selector, and an optical interface. The optical interface is exclusively fiber optic-based, thereby simplifying optical alignment and reducing the cost of the fluorometer. In another embodiment, the excitation source is an inexpensive monochromatic excitation source. In this case, the monochromatic excitation source and the first wavelength selector are preferably removable and replaceable, so that the fluorometer is advantageously able to generate different excitation wavelengths and detect different emission wavelengths.

Abstract: An method and apparatus for amplifying signals from an elemental detector in a detector array (10) is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a preamplifier (26) for amplifying the output of the elemental detector. The preamplifier comprises first differential amplifier (170) and a circuit (174) for lowering the gain of the first differential amplifier. The apparatus further comprises a postamplifier (28) for amplifying the output of the preamplifier (26). The postamplifier (28) comprises a second differential amplifier (370) and a circuit (374) for lowering the gain of the second differential amplifier.