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Spectrophotometers that determine the emission of electromagnetic radiation by a substance at one wavelength after it has absorbed radiation at another wavelength. These instruments usually determine the presence of fluorescent compounds by placing the sample in a beam of light (most frequently ultraviolet [UV]) where fluorescent compounds are excited, emitting visible light. Their principal components are a stable light source (e.g., a mercury vapor lamp), a grating that allows only a certain range of wavelengths to strike the sample, a sample cuvette (glass for exciting wavelengths above 320 nm, otherwise quartz), a secondary filter that removes scattered UV from the beam, and usually a photomultiplier tube as detector.
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