Application of a ring cavity surface emitting quantum cascade laser (RCSE-QCL) on the measurement of H2S in a CH4 matrix for process analytics

The present work reports on the first application of a ring-cavitysurface-emitting quantum-cascade laser (RCSE-QCL) for sensitive gas measurements. RCSE-QCLs are promising candidates for optical gassensing due to their single-mode, mode-hop-free and narrow-band emission characteristics along with their broad spectral coverage. The time resolved down-chirp of the RCSE-QCL in the 1227-1236 cm (8.15-8.09 μm) spectral range was investigated using a step-scan FT-IR spectrometer (Bruker Vertex 80v) with 2 ns time and 0.1 cm spectral resolution. The pulse repetition rate was set between 20 and 200 kHz and the laser device was cooled to 15-17°C. Employing 300 ns pulses a spectrum of ~1.5 cm could be recorded. Under these laser operation conditions and a gas pressure of 1000 mbar a limit of detection (3σ) of 1.5 ppmv for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in nitrogen was achieved using a 100 m Herriott cell and a thermoelectric cooled MCT detector for absorption measurements. 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