Application of spectral derivative data in visible and near-infrared spectroscopy.

The use of the spectral derivative method in visible and near-infrared optical spectroscopy is presented, whereby instead of using discrete measurements around several wavelengths, the difference between nearest neighbouring spectral measurements is utilized. The proposed technique is shown to be insensitive to the unknown tissue and fibre contact coupling coefficients providing substantially increased accuracy as compared to more conventional techniques. The self-calibrating nature of the spectral derivative techniques increases its robustness for both clinical and industrial applications, as is demonstrated based on simulated results as well as experimental data.