An optically accessible pyrolysis microreactor

We report an optically accessible pyrolysis micro-reactor suitable for \textit{in situ} laser spectroscopic measurements. A radiative heating design allows for completely unobstructed views of the micro-reactor along two axes. The maximum temperature demonstrated here is only 1300 K (as opposed to 1700 K for the usual SiC micro-reactor) because of the melting point of fused silica, but alternative transparent materials will allow for higher temperatures. Laser induced fluorescence measurements on nitric oxide are presented as a proof of principle for spectroscopic characterization of pyrolysis conditions. (This work has been published in J.~H. Baraban, D.~E. David, G.~B. Ellison, and J.~W. Daily. An Optically Accessible Pyrolysis Micro-Reactor. {\em Review of Scientific Instruments}, 87(1):014101, 2016.