Fluorescence detection of atmospheric nitrogen dioxide using a blue light-emitting diode as an excitation source.

We report on the development of a low-cost and compact instrument for quantifying atmospheric NO2 concentrations by detecting NO2 fluorescence using a commercial light-emitting diode around 435 nm as a fluorescence excitation light source. The minimum detectable limit of the NO2 instrument developed has been estimated to be 9.8 parts per billion of volume mixing ratio (ppbv) in a 60 s integration time and with a signal-to-noise ratio of 2. (C) 2010 Optical Society of America