SPICE Lab

The SPECtroscopy of Titan-Related ice AnaLogs (SPECTRAL) chamber is located in the Spectroscopy for Planetary ICes Environments (SPICE) laboratory. It is used primarily to investigate the spectral properties of the various hydrocarbon and nitrile ices and their mixtures observed in the stratosphere of Titan by Cassini's Composite InfraRed Spectrometer (CIRS). These properties in turn are incorporated into radiative transfer modeling of CIRS observations of Titan's stratosphere for the purpose of determining the chemical compositions, abundances, and vertical distributions of these ices as functions of Titan latitude and season. Organic vapors are typically deposited between 30 K and 150 K via a variable leak valve onto a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond substrate, where condensation directly into the solid state occurs. Quantitative thin film infrared transmission spectra between 50 and 11,700 cm^-1 (200 to 0.85 µm) of the given ice or ice mixture are measured, from which optical constants are then computed. These optical constants in turn provide the necessary input for interpreting radiative transfer analyses of CIRS observations of Titan's stratospheric ice clouds. See Anderson et al. (2018) for more details.

Although the SPECTRAL chamber is mostly focused on Titan stratospheric ice studies, its capabilities are also applicable to a much broader range of planetary objects such as gas and ice giant planet atmospheres, relatively cool exoplanet atmospheres, icy surfaces and atmospheres of Kuiper belt objects, icy moon surfaces, plume jet particulates, asteroid icy surfaces, and comets.