An absorption technique is described which utilizes a stabilized frequency-doubled tunable dye laser and a long-path White cell with high mirror reflectivities both in the red and UV. In laboratory conditions we have been able to obtain routinely a detection sensitivity of 3 parts in 10⁶ over absorption paths <1 m in length and a detection sensitivity of ~6 parts in 10⁵ over an absorption path of the order of 1 km. The latter number corresponds to 3 × 10⁶ OH molecules/cm³, and therefore the technique should be particularly useful for calibration of our fluorescence instrument for OH measurements. However, the presence of atmospheric fluctuations coupled with intensity variation accompanying frequency scanning appears to degrade the detection sensitivity in outdoor ambient conditions, thus making it unlikely that this technique can be employed for direct OH monitoring.

© 1982 Optical Society of America

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Citation lists with outbound citation links are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Log in to access OSA Member Subscription

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Cited by links are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Log in to access OSA Member Subscription

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Article level metrics are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Log in to access OSA Member Subscription