Abstract: Various embodiments are provided herein for a Raman analyzer system and associated method of analyzing a chemical process including a supercritical fluid extraction process or a solvent extraction process using a Raman analyzer system where the method involves generating light stimuli and providing the light stimuli to a sample of the chemical process; collecting scattered light from the sample; filtering the scattered light using one or more selected optical filters for selectively attenuating one or more wavelength sections for Raman analysis; detecting the filtered light; and generating one or more filtered Raman spectra of the detected light.

Abstract: Various embodiments are provided herein for an optical spectroscopy probe which generally includes a probe head having optical elements for coupling to an excitation fiber for receiving laser energy therefrom and generating a collimated excitation light beam; and a sample optic adjacent to the probe head, the sample optic having at least one optical element with two non-parallel surfaces to receive the collimated excitation light beam, to transmit the collimated excitation light beam to a sample, and to collect at least one afocal returning scattered light beam that is reflected from the sample.

Abstract: Various embodiments are described that provide an optical spectroscopy probe which has a probe head with a first attachment portion with at least one component having a first shape, a sample optic subassembly with a second attachment portion that is proximal to the probe head and has at least one component with a second shape that is complimentary to the first shape for releasably engaging the first attachment portion of the probe head, and a locking mechanism to hold the sample optic subassembly and the probe head together and constrain relative motion therebetween along at least five degrees of freedom.

Abstract: Sample optic assemblies are described that may have at least one optical element that is positioned and has one or more surfaces shaped to focus separate sections of a collimated excitation light beam to: (a) create at least one focal point or at least one focal line at one or more portions of a surface or an interior of a sample while compensating for optical aberrations that are created by an optical window or a transparent container that is adjacent the sample to reduce the size of and/or sharpen the at least one focal spot or the at least one focal line; (b) to create a plurality of focal spots, an array of discrete focal spots, at least one focal line, or at least one focal circle, at one or more portions of a surface or an interior of the sample or (c) to achieve (a) and (b).

Abstract: Various embodiments are described that provide an optical spectroscopy probe which has a probe head with a first attachment portion with at least one component having a first shape, a sample optic subassembly with a second attachment portion that is proximal to the probe head and has at least one component with a second shape that is complimentary to the first shape for releasably engaging the first attachment portion of the probe head, and a locking mechanism to hold the sample optic subassembly and the probe head together and constrain relative motion therebetween along at least five degrees of freedom.

Abstract: Various embodiments are provided herein for an optical spectroscopy probe which generally includes a probe head having optical elements for coupling to an excitation fiber for receiving laser energy therefrom and generating a collimated excitation light beam; and a sample optic adjacent to the probe head, the sample optic having at least one optical element with two non-parallel surfaces to receive the collimated excitation light beam, to transmit the collimated excitation light beam to a sample, and to collect at least one afocal returning scattered light beam that is reflected from the sample.

Abstract: Various embodiments of systems and methods are described herein that can be used for obtaining large bandwidth, high resolution spectral images in a single snapshot by using multiple detection stages that operate in different wavelength ranges and are coupled in a branch-like fashion.

Abstract: A beam reformatter to receive and split a beam into a plurality of beam portions, and further distribute and propagate two or more of the plurality of beam portions in substantially the same direction to create a reformatted composite beam, wherein the plurality of beam portions each contain the same spatial and spectral information as the received beam.

Abstract: A spectrograph including light beam reformatting element(s), beam expander(s), dispersive element(s) and light receiving element(s). The light beam reformatting element(s) reformat a received light beam into a reformatted light beam having a first dimension along a first axis that is larger than a dimension of the received light beam along the first axis and a second dimension along a second axis substantially orthogonal to the first axis that is smaller than a dimension of the received light beam along the second axis. The beam expander(s) anamorphically expand the reformatted light beam along the second axis into an expanded light beam. The dispersive element(s) disperse the expanded light beam along the second axis, resulting in a dispersed light beam. The light receiving element(s) receive the dispersed light beam. The light receiving element(s) may include one or more detectors to measure spectral intensity of the dispersed light beam.

Abstract: An optical coherence tomography (OCT) system comprising: a splitter configured to receive and split an optical source beam generating a reference beam and a sample beam, the sample beam directed at a sample and interacting with the sample to generate a return beam; a delay module configured to receive and introduce an optical delay in the reference beam, to generate a delayed reflected beam configured to interfere with the return beam to generate an interferogram; a spatial filter system capable of filtering randomly scattered light from at least one of the return beam or the interferogram; and a detector array to receive the interferogram for spatial and spectral analysis.

Abstract: An optical slicer for generating an output spot comprising an image compressor which receives a substantially collimated input beam and compresses the beam, wherein the input beam, if passed through a focusing lens, produces an input spot; an image reformatter which receives the compressed beam to reformat the beam into a plurality of sliced portions of the compressed beam and vertically stacks the portions substantially parallel to each other; and an image expander which expands the reformatted beam to produce a collimated output beam which, if passed through the focusing lens, produces the output spot that is expanded in a first dimension and compressed in a second dimension relative to the input spot.

Abstract: An optical coherence tomography (OCT) system comprising: a splitter configured to receive and split an optical source beam generating a reference beam and a sample beam, the sample beam directed at a sample and interacting with the sample to generate a return beam; a delay module configured to receive and introduce an optical delay in the reference beam, to generate a delayed reflected beam configured to interfere with the return beam to generate an interferogram; a spatial filter system capable of filtering randomly scattered light from at least one of the return beam or the interferogram; and a detector array to receive the interferogram for spatial and spectral analysis.

Abstract: A spectrograph including light beam reformatting element(s), beam expander(s), dispersive element(s) and light receiving element(s). The light beam reformatting element(s) reformat a received light beam into a reformatted light beam having a first dimension along a first axis that is larger than a dimension of the received light beam along the first axis and a second dimension along a second axis substantially orthogonal to the first axis that is smaller than a dimension of the received light beam along the second axis. The beam expander(s) anamorphically expand the reformatted light beam along the second axis into an expanded light beam. The dispersive element(s) disperse the expanded light beam along the second axis, resulting in a dispersed light beam. The light receiving element(s) receive the dispersed light beam. The light receiving element(s) may include one or more detectors to measure spectral intensity of the dispersed light beam.

Abstract: An optical slicer for generating an output spot comprising an image compressor which receives a substantially collimated input beam and compresses the beam, wherein the input beam, if passed through a focusing lens, produces an input spot; an image reformatter which receives the compressed beam to reformat the beam into a plurality of sliced portions of the compressed beam and vertically stacks the portions substantially parallel to each other; and an image expander which expands the reformatted beam to produce a collimated output beam which, if passed through the focusing lens, produces the output spot that is expanded in a first dimension and compressed in a second dimension relative to the input spot.