How The Detector Operates - Agilent Technologies 1260 Infinity User Manual

How the Detector Operates

Luminescence Detection
Luminescence, the emission of light, occurs when molecules change from an
excited state to their ground state. Molecules can be excited by different forms
of energy, each with its own excitation process. For example, when the
excitation energy is light, the process is called photoluminescence.
In basic cases, the emission of light is the reverse of absorption, see
on page 11. With sodium vapor, for example, the absorption and emission
spectra are a single line at the same wavelength. The absorption and emission
spectra of organic molecules in solution produce bands instead of lines.
Figure 2
Agilent 1260 FLD User Manual
ν
Absorption of Light Versus Emission of Light
Introduction to the Fluorescence Detector
How the Detector Operates
ν
1
Figure 2
11