Deep-ultraviolet resonance Raman spectroscopy (DUVRRS) is a promising approach to stand-off detection of explosive traces due to large Raman cross-section and background free signatures. In order to design an effective sensor, one must be able to estimate the signal level of the DUVRRS signature for solid-phase explosive residues. The conventional approach to signal estimation uses scattering cross-sections and molar absorptivity, measured on solutions of explosives dissolved in an optically-transparent solvent. Only recently have researchers started to measure solid-state cross-sections. For most solid-phase explosives and explosive mixtures, neither the DUV Raman scattering cross sections nor the optical absorption coefficient are known, and they are very difficult to separately measure. Therefore, for a typical solid explosive mixture, it is difficult to accurately estimate Raman signal strength using conventional approaches. To address this issue, we have developed a technique to measure the Raman scattering strength of optically-thick (opaque) materials, or “Raman Albedo”, defined as the total power of Raman-scattered light per unit frequency per unit solid angle divided by the incident power of the excitation source. We have measured Raman Albedo signatures for a wide range of solid explosives at four different DUV excitation wavelengths. These results will be presented, and we will describe the use of Raman Albedo measurements in the design and current construction of a novel stand-off explosive sensor, based on dual-excitation-wavelength DUVRRS.

Date Published: 23 May 2013
PDF: 10 pages
Proc. SPIE 8734, Active and Passive Signatures IV, 87340G (23 May 2013); doi: 10.1117/12.2015951

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8734:
Active and Passive Signatures IV
G. Charmaine Gilbreath; Chadwick Todd Hawley, Editor(s)