Characterizing the performance of a fast FT-IR imaging spectrometer

The noise sources present in fast FT-IR imaging instrumentation are analyze d in order to ascertain the limits of the quantitative ability of this tech nique. Methods to increase the quality of spectral and spatial information are presented. It is shown that a technique comparable to the coaddition of multiple mirror scans in standard FT-IR spectroscopy is able to increase t he signal-to-noise ratio of the spectral data obtained, and that the expect ed square root behavior is obeyed. A method of distinguishing real image fe atures from artifacts is also presented.