Electrical dark, and spectrum noise.

[Fallen Seraph]

I don't mean to violate any rules or conventions; these are questions pertaining to labs I'm doing as part of an undergrad degree. It's not homework, as such, so I've not put it in one of those forums But my apologies if this is incorrect.



Anyhow; the experiment that bothers me is a spectroscopy one. Light is passesd through an optical fibre, through a bunch of mirrors and diffraction grating, and thence into a CCD.


My questions being: what's electrical dark?

Also, what's the 'noise' that I see in the spectrum? Is it some thermal effect on the CCD? Or is it something to do with the electrical dark? Indeed, is the electrical dark a thermal effect?

 

[Naty1]

For electrical noise, try Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_noise

for an overview.

 

[astrokreng]

I can provide some clarification on the terms "electrical dark" and "spectrum noise" in the context of your experiment.

Firstly, electrical dark refers to the signal that is generated by the CCD (charge-coupled device) in the absence of any light input. This is essentially the baseline or background signal of the CCD and can be caused by thermal or electrical effects within the device. It is important to measure and subtract this electrical dark signal in order to accurately measure the spectrum of the light passing through the optical fiber.

Now, onto the "noise" that you see in the spectrum. This can refer to any unwanted fluctuations or variations in the signal, which can be caused by various factors such as fluctuations in the light source, imperfections in the optical components, or even electronic interference. In your case, the noise you are seeing could indeed be a thermal effect on the CCD, as well as other factors such as electronic noise from the CCD itself or the readout electronics.

In order to reduce or eliminate this noise, it is important to carefully control and calibrate your experimental setup, as well as use techniques such as averaging multiple measurements or applying noise-reducing algorithms. It is also important to understand and account for the sources of noise in your experiment in order to accurately interpret your data and draw meaningful conclusions.

I hope this helps to clarify the concepts of electrical dark and spectrum noise in your spectroscopy experiment. Good luck with your studies!