Instrumental factors in infrared microspectroscopy.

Instrumentation is the cornerstone of infrared microspectrometry (IMS) technology and the foundation for all applications. The fundamental factors in IMS systems are presented from the perspective of an instrument developer. While the current state of instrument development is presented, speculation of future development is also included. The goal of IMS instrumentation is to produce the highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) spectrum with the highest spectral resolution from the smallest sample area. Detector response, spectrometer efficiency, source brightness, wavelength range, microscope optics and sample definition are factors limiting IMS instrument performance. The current performance and future trends in IMS instrumentation are presented in this work.