In measuring technology, a spectrophotometer is a versatile device that can be used to make various measurements in lots of different areas of colour analysis. The different wavelengths of light form a spectrum which we view as spectral colours. Everything that is perceived by the human eye lies within the wave range of 400 … 700 nm and is called the visual spectrum. However, the complete light spectrum is much wider and not perceivable by the human eye. This spectrum is called the UV spectrum.
In contrast to a densitometer which measures the reflection of a colour in order to analyse the thickness of a colour layer, a spectrophotometer can measure throughout the entire spectrum of visible light by illuminating the measured area. The complete area is made visible from infrared to ultraviolet. These meters can better evaluate the remission values and possible colour deviations between two points can be calculated. A certain range of spectral colours is detected and processed by the sensor of a photocell.
The quality depends on the are to be scanned. The wider the range recognisable by the sensor of the photocell is, the better is the meter. A spectrophotometer consists mainly of a light source, a prism, different measuring apertures, a cuvette holder and a detector for making measurements which will then appear on a display. A keypad and an LCD allow the user to work with the device easily and without any complications. For sustainable operation, a spectrophotometer is also equipped with different ports such as a printer or USB port. Depending on the type of spectrophotometer, different modes of measurement are integrated such as standard mode, concentration mode, curve mode, etc.