Water vapor absorption of carbon dioxide laser radiation

Abstract

An optoacoustic detector or spectrophone has been used to perform detailed measurements of the absorptivity of mixtures of water vapor in air. A C¹²O₂¹⁶ laser was used as the source, and measurements were made. at forty-nine different wavelengths from 9.2 μm to 10.7 μm. The details of the optoacoustic detector and its calibration are presented, along with a discussion of its performance characteristics. The results of the measurements of water vapor absorption show that the continuum absorption in the wavelength range covered is 5–10% lower than previous measurements.