Practical Low‐Cost Recovery of Spectral Power Distributions

Measuring the spectral power distribution of a light source, that is, the emission as a function of wavelength, typically requires the use of spectrophotometers or multi‐spectral cameras. Here, we propose a low‐cost system that enables the recovery of the visible light spectral signature of different types of light sources without requiring highly complex or specialized equipment and using just off‐the‐shelf, widely available components. To do this, a standard Digital Single‐Lens Reflex (DSLR) camera and a diffraction filter are used, sacrificing the spatial dimension for spectral resolution. We present here the image formation model and the calibration process necessary to recover the spectrum, including spectral calibration and amplitude recovery. We also assess the robustness of our method and perform a detailed analysis exploring the parameters influencing its accuracy. Further, we show applications of the system in image processing and rendering.