Spectrometer
date: label: date made
content: 1914-1926
notes: label: Description
content: In a constant deviation spectrometer, the collimator and telescope are fixed in place and the observed wavelength is varied by rotating the prism or diffraction grating in the central box. The “ADAM HILGER LTD / LONDON / ENGLAND” inscription on the eyepiece of this example identifies the manufacturer. The “JAMES G. BIDDLE / PHILADELPHIA, U.S.A.” inscription on a brass plate identifies the firm that brought the instrument into the United States.
label: Description
content: Adam Hilger, Ltd. introduced its first constant deviation spectrometer in 1904, noting that the prism was designed by Messrs. Pellin & Broca, and described in the <i>Journal de Physique</i> in 1899. The form proved remarkably successful, and remained on the market for decades. This type of Modified Wavelength Spectrometer was made between 1914 and 1926; this example was made in 1920, and used at the National Bureau of Standards. The arm between the collimator and the prism can hold one of three high-resolution multiple-beam interferometers: a Michelson echelon diffraction grating, a Lummer-Gehrcke parallel plate, or a Fabry-Perot etalon.
label: Description
content: Ref: Arthur H. Thomas Company, <i>Laboratory Apparatus and Reagents</i> (Philadelphia, 1914), p. 495.
label: Description
content: Noah Rindos, “A Constant Deviation Wavelength Spectrometer Made by Adam Hilger, Ltd.,” <i>Rittenhouse</i> 12 (1998): 25-29.
label: Description
content: Charlotte Bigg, “Adam Hilger, Ltd and the Development of Spectrochemical Analysis,” in Peter J. T. Morris, ed., <i>From Classical to Modern Chemistry. The Instrumental Revolution</i> (London, 2002), pp. 111-129.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United Kingdom: England, London
topic: label: Subject
content: Science & Scientific Instruments
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: PH.326620
label: catalog number
content: 326620
label: accession number
content: 261654
objectType: label: Object Name
content: spectrometer, constant deviation
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: metal accesories: 3 5/16 in x 13 7/8 in x 3 1/2 in; 8.4455 cm x 35.2425 cm x 8.89 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall: 12 1/2 in x 20 in x 19 1/2 in; 31.75 cm x 50.8 cm x 49.53 cm