Ocean Optics SpectraSuite - Manual (Page 95)

7: Processing Menu Functions
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4. The wizard asks for the location of the file. Use the browse function to find the appropriate file.
These files are text files with a *.STANDARD file extension. The file format must be exactly as
expected or SpectraSuite won't be able to load it properly. The files that you can download from
this page are ready to be used.
5. Once you load the file, the contents of the file header are shown as well as a graph of the
reflectivity values.
6. Click to make your stored reference read the values from the file, interpolated to the
wavelength at each pixel. You can take a new reference spectrum at any time without having to go
through the wizard again.
Note
You can use your own materials as a reference. The data in the reference file consists of a
header, then a pair of numbers wavelength and value. SpectraSuite will interpolate from
the data set to the wavelengths used by the particular spectrometer you have connected.
Make a copy of a working file, and then edit the contents. Be sure to change the starting
and ending wavelength in the file header, and use decimal values for reflectivity.
Add Reference Monitor
Select Processing | Pre-processing | Add Reference Monitor to adjust the signal to compensate for
variations in spectral intensity based on light source and system drift. The reference spectrum for the
reference acquisition is the starting "ideal" state of the lamp. Any deviations the lamp makes from that
reference spectrum will cause compensation in the sample acquisition.
For extended experiments, you will achieve optimal results if you take frequent reference spectra. If this
is not possible, however, you can choose to monitor your light source and instruct SpectraSuite to correct
for any drift that might occur. There are two types of drift: Spectrally uniform and spectrally nonuniform.
The drift associated with a tungsten lamp is often spectrally uniform, but the drift associated with a
deuterium lamp is not.
Reference Monitoring allows you to monitor a reference for variations in spectral intensity based on light
source and system drift. To monitor a reference, the following conditions must be met:
 You are using either multiple spectrometers (and spectra overlap in the area to be
referenced), or one spectrometer with multiple acquisitions, and
 You have stored both a reference and dark spectrum. Once these spectra have been
stored, the Reference Monitoring function is activated (is available for use).
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