Where do I point it?
Now that you have a working spectrometer give these experiments a shot.
Point it at the sky
This is a good starting place, and a pretty easy spectrum to capture. Simply go outside during the day and point the spectrometer at an evenly illuminated part of the sky -- cloud or blue sky both work.
Even though air is pretty clear, pointing your spectrometer through miles of the atmosphere places enough molecules between your spectrometer and your light source (AKA the sun). Because of the sheer amount of molecules, you can see lines where CO2, O2, O3, and water vapor have absorbed part of the spectrum.
For example, see: https://spectralworkbench.org/analyze/spectrum/913 (below)
Please note: this will only work with a device that can measure near-infrared light; one based on a modified webcam like the Desktop Spectrometry Kit.
Point it at different lights
Now let's try using manmade light sources. Go indoors and find some different kinds of light bulbs. Turn them on and point your spectrometer at them. Notice how much less of "the rainbow" you see compared to
Flourescent - see the distinct emission lines of the mercury spectrum from mercury vapor in the lamps
Flourescent specturm example image
Neon lights -- see these examples: http://publiclab.org/notes/cfastie/2-23-2013/neon
Different colors of lasers - each of which will produce only a narrow band of colored light. Consider how to measure it without overloading the spectrometer with too much light.
What's next?
Try some more advanced tests. You'll need a few more things; with a candle and a small spray bottle, you can
Preparing a spray solution (hyperlink)
Measure emission spectra from salt
Try things which few people have done
Help advance this project -- please share your results if you manage to record data of one of these!
Measure emission spectra from other things in your kitchen -- alum? Mineral supplements dissolved in water? http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=dp_brw_link?node=3774271
Oil - Motor / Olive - compare two types of oil Garage version: get oil from your car
Laser
Detecting blueing dyes in laundy detergent UV light
* see JoshMC's post about this here: http://publiclab.org/notes/joshmc/4-28-2012/setup-uv-testing-specrtrometer
* and his results here: https://spectralworkbench.org/sets/show/15
Varying concentrations of liquids like coffee, wine, soda, juice. Try to demonstrate Beer's Law by diluting your sample with 50% water, repeatedly.
* see examples here: http://publiclab.org/tag/beers-law
Venture off into the unknown. Sampling methodology (hyperlink for page to be created)
