Progress in Optics

Sample preparation is an essential step in many analyses. This book approaches the topic of sample preparation in chromatography in a methodical way, viewing it as a logical connection between sample collection and analytical chromatography. Providing a guide for choosing the appropriate sample preparation for a given analysis, this book describes various ways to process the sample, explaining the principle, discussing the advantages and disadvantages, describing the applicability to different types of samples, and showing the fitness to specific chromatographic determinations. The first part of the book contains an overview of sample preparation showing its relation to sample collection and to the core chromatographic analysis. The second part covers procedures that do not use chemical modifications of the analyte and includes methods for sample dissolution, concentration and cleanup designed mainly for modifying the initial matrix of the sample. This part starts with conventional separations such as filtration and distillation and finishes with more advanced techniques such as solid phase extraction and electroseparations. The third part gives a description of the chemical modifications that can be performed on a sample either for fractionation purposes or to improve a specific property of the analyte. This part includes derivatizations, polymer chemical degradations, and pyrolysis.The first volume of this text was published in 1961, only a few months after the invention of the laser. This event triggered a wealth of developments, many of which were reported in the 240 review articles which were published in this series since its inception. The present volume contains seven articles covering a wide range of subjects. The first article presents a review of various optical effects in spherical and circular micro-cavities capable of supporting high-Q resonant modes (commonly referred to as morphology-dependent resonances (MDRs) or whispering gallery modes (WGMs)). The second presents a comprehensive review of the theory and practice of optical disk data storage. Other articles include discussions on delay control systems for wideband phased array antennas, and quantum statistical properties of optical beams interacting in nonlinear couplers.