Journal
OPTICA
Volume 3, Issue 4, Pages 385-388Publisher
OPTICAL SOC AMER
DOI: 10.1364/OPTICA.3.000385
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- Programma Nazionale di Ricerche in Antartide (PNRA) [2013/AC4.01]
- ESFRI Roadmap Project Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI)
- EU [284464]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
High-sensitivity radiocarbon detection has been, until now, a prerogative of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). Here we present a compact and simple spectroscopic apparatus, based on saturated-absorption cavity ring-down, approaching the ultimate AMS sensitivity. We measure radiocarbon dioxide concentration down to a few parts per quadrillion by use of a heterodyne-spectroscopy system with two quantum cascade lasers at 4.5 mu m, a reference cell, and a high-finesse cavity with the sample gas cooled down to 170 K. Our results pave the way to a paradigm change in radiocarbon measurement, with a number of significant applications in areas such as environment, nuclear security, pharmacology, and cultural heritage. (C) 2016 Optical Society of America
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available