Authors:
Michael J. Thorpe, David Balslev-Clausen, Matthew S. Kirchner, and Jun Ye
Summary:
Broad-bandwidth, high-spectral-resolution optical detection of human breath has identified multiple important biomarkers correlated with specific diseases and metabolic processes. This optical-frequency-comb-based breath analysis system comes with excellent performance in all criteria: high detection sensitivity, ability to identify and distinguish a large number of analytes, and simultaneous, real-time information processing. We demonstrate a minimum detectable absorption of 8 x 10-10cm-1, a spectral resolution of 800 MHz, and 200 nm of spectral coverage from 1.5 to 1.7 μm where strong and unique molecular fingerprints exist for many biomarkers. We present a series of breath measurements including stable isotope ratios of CO2, breath concentrations of CO, and the presence of trace concentrations of NH3 in high concentrations of H2O.
Source:
Optics Express, Vol. 16, Issue 4, pp. 2387-2397.