Fluorescence occurs in a compound when a molecule absorbs light of a single energy; that energy is then released as light of a different wavelength when the molecule returns to its ground state. In a Fluorescence Spectrometer, a sample is illuminated with light of one wavelength, and then the machine detects light that is emitted from the sample at a different wavelength. While the number of compounds that are naturally fluorescent is relatively small, the sensitivity of the instrument makes it a powerful method for the analysis of small amounts of certain materials.

The Fluorescence Spectrometer is a Perkin Elmer model 204, and has been used in Chem 434 - Instrumental Analysis, and in research projects. It has been used to quantitate total Thiamine found in samples of fish eggs. Thiamine itself is not fluorescent, but it can be converted to thiochrome, a fluorescent compound. In this form, our Fluorescent Spectrometer could detect as little as 1 nmole of Thiamine per gram of tissue.