Integration of a versatile bridge concept in a 34 GHz pulsed/CW EPR spectrometer

Abstract

We present a 34 GHz continuous wave (CW)/pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer capable of pulse-shaping that is based on a versatile microwave bridge design. The bridge radio frequency (RF)-in/RF-out design (500 MHz to 1 GHz input/output passband, 500 MHz instantaneous input/output bandwidth) creates a flexible platform with which to compare a variety of excitation and detection methods utilizing commercially available equipment external to the bridge. We use three sources of RF input to implement typical functions associated with CW and pulse EPR spectroscopic measurements. The bridge output is processed via high speed digitizer and an in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) demodulator for pulsed work or sent to a wideband, high dynamic range log detector for CW. Combining this bridge with additional commercial hardware and new acquisition and control electronics, we have designed and constructed an adaptable EPR spectrometer that builds upon previous work in the literature and is functionally comparable to other available systems.