Infrared techniques

Infrared techniques use infrared radiation to detect, measure, image, or analyze objects and materials. They include methods based on emitted heat, reflected radiation, and molecular absorption.

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Thermography: Imaging that maps surface temperature from emitted infrared radiation. It turns infrared emission into maps of temperature differences across objects.
Blackbody radiation: Electromagnetic radiation emitted by an idealized object whose spectrum depends on its temperature. Thermal infrared imaging interprets emitted radiation through temperature-dependent spectra.
Infrared: Electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths longer than visible light and shorter than microwaves. Infrared techniques use this portion of the electromagnetic spectrum as their signal.
Visible-light imaging: Image formation using electromagnetic radiation detectable by the human eye. It records reflected visible light, unlike thermal imaging's measurement of emitted infrared radiation.
Infrared spectroscopy: Analysis of how matter absorbs infrared radiation at different frequencies. Absorption patterns identify molecular bonds and help characterize materials.
Planck's law: A law describing the spectral distribution of radiation emitted by a blackbody at a given temperature. It connects a thermal camera's measured spectrum to the source temperature.
Electromagnetic spectrum: The full range of electromagnetic radiation, ordered by frequency or wavelength. Infrared occupies one region within this broader spectrum.
Raman spectroscopy: A spectroscopy method that analyzes inelastic scattering of monochromatic light by molecular vibrations. It provides vibrational information through scattering rather than infrared absorption.
Night vision: Technologies that make scenes visible in low light or darkness. Thermal imaging is a major infrared route to seeing without visible light.
Wien's displacement law: A relation stating that a blackbody's peak emission wavelength is inversely proportional to its temperature. It explains why warmer objects radiate most strongly at shorter infrared wavelengths.