[Academic] Q: What's a spectroscopist for? A: environmental spectroscopy!

[Dino Jaroszynski]

Great work Kevin - something very useful at last. I think that is you 
had detected 260 nm radiation  you would have had to follow it up with a 
UVB cancer study.

Best wishes

Dino

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Prof. Dino Jaroszynski FRSE FInstP

Director of the Scottish Centre for the Application of Plasma-based 
Accelerators, SCAPA

University of Strathclyde

Physics Department

Scottish Universities Physics Alliance (SUPA)

John Anderson Building

107 Rottenrow

Glasgow G4 0NG

Scotland, UK

Tel: +44 (141) 548 3057

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mobile/cellphone: +44 7966152465

e-mail: D.A.Jaroszynski at strath.ac.uk

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http://phys.strath.ac.uk/alpha-x/

http://ppp.phys.strath.ac.uk

The University of Strathclyde is a charitable body, registered in 
Scotland, with registration number SC015263

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On 09/05/2017 17:37, Kevin O'Donnell wrote:
> Those of you who wash your hands occasionally will have noticed an odd blue light emerging from the new hand driers in the, ahem, toilets.
>
> The Semiconductor Spectroscopy team of Singh, Edwards and O’Donnell have undertaken a spectral analysis of the afore-mentioned blue light by means of Akhilesh’s laptop, Paul’s computer interfacing and my standing around asking ‘is it working yet?’.
>
> We are happy to announce that our efforts were crowned with success and the results are in!
>
> Figure 1 compares the spectrum of light emitted in coincidence with hand dessicification by a Mighty Warm Wind from the drier with something actually useful.
> The light is true blue with a narrow peak near 475 nm. This was a huge disappointment to one member of the team who had hoped to see something else.
>
> As can be seen from Fig. 1, the overlap with a spectrum (stolen from Google) showing the germicidal effectiveness of UV light is quite difficult to estimate; we reckon about 0±10%, approximately.
>
> So there you have it. Next time you wash your hands (or starting now if you so decide) you can admire the pretty blue light and be assured that it is doing you no (anti-bacterial) good whatsoever.
>
> Our next project will be to search for the little fluorescent dots that are supposed to be embedded in the new pound coins.
>
>
> With best regards,
>
>
> KP O’Donnell, on behalf of the Authors.
>
>
> Kevin Peter O'Donnell
> Professor of Semiconductor Spectroscopy
> SUPA Physics Department
> Strathclyde University
> Glasgow G4 0NG
> Scotland, UK.
>
> email: k.p.odonnell at strath.ac.uk<mailto:k.p.odonnell at strath.ac.uk>
> web: http://ssd.phys.strath.ac.uk/index.php/Main_Page
> tel: 0141 548 3365/3458
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Academic mailing list
> Academic at phys.strath.ac.uk
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