
As far as spectroscopic instruments go, multichannel imaging spectrometers -- which in their common form take their spectral signals from across a 2D image field via an array of fiber-optics (the channels) -- are real workhorses.
Small, rugged, and sensitive, these instruments are used in industry (materials analysis, pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals, semiconductors, chemical-reaction monitoring, and so on); the biomedical arena (screening and diagnosis, analytical cell biology, microscopy, and others), forensics, and basic research.
Learning more about multichannel spectrometers, their uses, and what's inside them is actually quite easy -- or at least this week it will be, as Jeff Hecht, Contributing Editor to Laser Focus World, will be presenting a webcast this coming Thursday on Multichannel Spectroscopy: Technology and Applications.
The webcast, which will be held on March 6, 2014 at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time) is free; to find out more about the event and to register, visit http://www.laserfocusworld.com/webcasts/2014/03/multichannel-spectroscopy.html.

John Wallace | Senior Technical Editor (1998-2022)
John Wallace was with Laser Focus World for nearly 25 years, retiring in late June 2022. He obtained a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and physics at Rutgers University and a master's in optical engineering at the University of Rochester. Before becoming an editor, John worked as an engineer at RCA, Exxon, Eastman Kodak, and GCA Corporation.