An optical instrument for the submillimeter spectroscopy of the volatile metabolome

We are designing and realizing an instrument for the spectroscopy of the volatile metabolome of the soil microorganisms. The use of optical telecommunication elements makes it possible to realize a compact source with a wide range of accessible frequencies (100 GHz - 1 THz range; 3-33 cm
^-1
) with an accuracy of 10
⁵
Hz (3.10
^-6
cm
^-1
), as well as a low bandwidth detection system. The instrument will discriminate among complex polar molecules. We report on the preliminary performances of parts of the source system.