THE MEASUREMENT OF LIGHT 5-11

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OXIDE
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SELENIUM^/"
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WAVELENGTH IN MICRONS
1.2
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b
SELENIUM
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THERMO-/..
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2,000 3,000 4,000 6,000 10,000 20,000
TEMPERATURE OF BLACKBODY RADIATION
IN DEGREES KELVIN
0.40 0.76 0.45 0.50 0.55 0.60 0.65 0.70
WAVELENGTH IN MICRONS
1 micron =
10,000 angstroms =
1/10,000 centimeters
FIG. 5-6a. Relative spectral sensitivity characteristics of typical copper oxide
and selenium barrier-layer cells, b. Multiplying (correction) factor versus color
temperature for uncorrected cells of representative spectral characteristics.
6
c.
Spectral transmittance curves for filters designed to correct, the spectral sensitivity
characteristic of barrier-layer cells and thermopiles to correspond with I.C.I, ob-
server. "Viscor" and "Barnes" filters are designed for use with selenium cells.
Methods of measuring ultraviolet energy have been described also.
11
Adaptation level. Like the human eye, many photocells increase in
sensitivity when kept in the dark for periods extending over several hours.
A normal reading can be obtained only after the cell has been adapted by
exposure to the light for a period which for different instruments of the
same type may vary between several minutes and several hours. The
way to determine the interval for a particular instrument is to observe
over a period of time the output (meter reading) of a dark-adapted cell
(12 hours in the dark) when it is exposed to a constant illumination.
Adaptation is complete when the readings remain constant. The cell
must be exposed to each new level of illumination (variation of 10
footcandles) for this period before accurate readings may be obtained.
The error due to lack of adaptation will not exceed about 5 per cent and
therefore may usually be ignored in field work.
Angle
of
incidence {cosine law). Light which strikes the face of a cell
is reflected from the cover glass and the cell surface, and may be obstructed
by the rim of the case. The magnitude of these effects varies with the
angle of incidence, and an error of the order of 25 per cent can be expected