Radiometry Light Measurement

Radiometry is the detection and measurement of the electromagnetic spectrum (ultraviolet, visible, and infrared).

(Please SCROLL DOWN to review our selection of RADIOMETERS for use in all types of radiometric measurements.)

Radiometry is light measurement

Radiometry is the detection and measurement of light waves in the optical portion of the electromagnetic spectrum which is further divided into ultraviolet, visible, and infrared light.

All light measurement is considered radiometry with photometry being a special subset of radiometry weighted for a typical human eye response.

Manipulating light for more accurate measurement

Light waves behave like all electromagnetic waves in that they interfere with each other, become directionally polarized, or bend when passing an edge. Because of these properties, light waves can be predictably manipulated for increased or decreased amplitude or even filtered by wavelength or a band of wavelengths by means of various filters, mirrors, lenses, prisms, gratings, and other input optics.

These principals make it feasible to tailor a light detector to match a particular application.

In most cases, when making radiometric measurements with silicon photodiodes, a flat spectral response filter is used to even out the detector's innate sensitivity to the red portion of the spectrum versus the blue. This flat response allows the detector to accurately measure light at one wavelength versus another. This is particularly useful if the spectral output of the light source is unknown or likely to vary with operating conditions or application requirements.

In the event that a particular section of the output from a light source needs to be isolated, a detector with a narrower response can be used, or a band pass filter can be placed on a broad response detector to tailor it’s response to measure just the required portion of light. Narrow band filters can also be used to isolate a very narrow portion of light such as that of a specific mercury emission line.

Radiometry instrumentation for nearly any application

International Light Technologies (ILT) offers a broad array of radiometry detectors to allow configuration of a radiometer system to measure nearly any application from the UV (160 nm) to far-Infrared (40 um). We also have high-gain radiometry detectors for very low level light detection and our powerful ILT950 Wideband Spectroradiometer for complete, turnkey spectral measurements.