Detecting variation in optical properties of liquid sample comprises sequentially measuring light transmitted from two different light sources in short time

摘要

Method (I) for detecting a variation in the optical properties of a liquid sample comprises performing the following sequence of operations in 1-10 ms: (a) exposing the sample to a pulse of light (L1) in a first frequency range; (b) measuring the light transmitted through the sample using a detector in the path of L1; (c) storing the result in a memory; (d) exposing the sample to a pulse of light (L2) in a second frequency range from the same point as L1; (e) measuring the light transmitted through the sample; and (f) analyzing the results stored in the memory. An Independent claim is also included for apparatus for performing method (I) comprising an L1-emitting light source coupled via an optical waveguide to an emission head aligned with a transparent sample container, an L2-emitting light source coupled via an optical waveguide to the emission head, an electro-optic detector located in line with the emission head but on the other side of the sample container and a microprocessor that controls the light sources and detector to perform the sequence of operations and is programmed to analyze the results.